


The Extraordinary Art of Motivation

by kohaku_shi



Series: The Extraordinary Art of Motivation [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Team 7 Formation, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Deviates From Canon, Divergence from Series Start, I'm terrible at coming up with titles, Kakashi's a little crazy in this one, Multiple 3rd Person Perspectives, Original Kekkei Genkai | Bloodline Limit, Partially Free-Flow and Partially Planned, Sakura's not on Team 7, T.E.A.M. isn't so bad as far as Acronyms go tho', Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, This is somewhat experimental
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-28
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2018-12-20 22:17:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 50,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11930421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kohaku_shi/pseuds/kohaku_shi
Summary: Cross-Post from Fanfiction.net"Presenting: the Latest of Naruto!AU's! Featuring a strange child, a broody avenger, an unpredictable knucklehead, their Sensei, and the everyday crazy that is Team Seven." (Based on whatever I remember of the Anime/Manga)Naruto, TEAM!Verse. Originally part of "The Scrap Heap (Naruto Edition)" as Scraps 01 & 04 but now it's own story.Current Arc: Original Training Arc (Post-Bell Test, Pre-Wave)





	1. Team Placement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the beginning of a brand new story! Naruto's finally gotten his hitae-ate. But now, it's time... for Team Placements! Who knows just what the future will hold for him now...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy the premise of this idea. In this Alternate edition of Naruto -one of my more recent ones, and one that I'm quite fond of to be honest (as you can see depending on what you're reading this on, I've even made a cover for it!), the Original Character is a pretty androgynous child (often mistaken as a male if you didn't know otherwise, or have the ability to figure it out just from the senses) who...well, she's definitely different. It'd probably be easier to figure out through context than explain, so I'll just leave it at that for now, eheh... (I can promise she won't be a mary-sue/gary-stu. Definitely strange, but not super powerful or anything like that. Which was really the basis of an idea where even a minor change in a part of the story-line would change everything. Yay, world-building! Not to mention practice writing from the perspectives of different types of characters.)
> 
> This story is also self-beta'd, so if you find any mistakes, typo's, grammatical errors, please do let me know! I don't bite, really! I've never been good at beginnings to be honest, but I do hope I managed to give this justice.
> 
> Please note that this is third person perspective with...somewhat frequent perspective changes -at least for the moment. This is the first time I've been able to actually write a beginning to a story according to...plan. [So tempted to say keikaku]
> 
> (Seriously though, apologies for any mistakes here. I have to beta my own things, so any misses and mistakes are entirely my own. / / cue bow.)

* * *

 

 **I** t was the moment of truth.

Iruka-sensei would be calling his name at any minute, and then he would know…

_Was he going to be on the same team as Sakura-chan?!_

Naruto bounced in his seat, ignoring the brooding raven-haired, self-proclaimed avenger beside him. Neither of them wanted to think about the earlier 'incident', and though it was too late to switch seats, that didn't mean they couldn't put as much distance in between themselves as possible.

Still, several teams had been called and grouped, the 7th only now being revealed to the class.

"...Team Seven: Tsukino Kohaku, Uzumaki Naruto, and Uchiha Sasuke-"

"WHAT?!" the blonde cried out, half yelping and yelling.  _Sasuke?!_  He was teamed with Sasuke!? And there wasn't even a girl on their team! He was stuck with the creepy kid and the bastard!

(Somewhere near the back of the room, a sleepy looking dark haired brunette sniffed awkwardly, somehow managing to resist the sudden urge to sneeze.)

"Iruka-sensei!" He exclaimed, eyes half pleading half indignant, "Why does an outstanding shinobi like me have to be on the same team as that bastard over there?!" he demanded, more riled up by the fact that Sasuke was on his team than the rather gloomy and sleep-deprived looking kid that always sat somewhere near the back of the classroom and always seemed to leave as soon as they were dismissed.

Of course, it would've been  _Awesome_  if he'd've been able to have Sakura-chan on his team (actually, scratch that, Sakura was way better than that Sasuke-bastard! ...And he really -kinda, sorta...maybe... sort of…- didn't mind being on the same team as the gloomy looking kid, if only they could just get rid of that stupid bastard!

In front of the chalkboard, Iruka withheld a sigh. As much as he loved the whiskered blonde prankster like a brother, there were just times when the kid was such a brat that he wondered. Still, he tried to be patient, Naruto could be a bit slow sometimes after all. "Sasuke's grades were the best of all 27 graduates, Naruto. You were dead last. You  _do_  understand we have to do this to balance the teams, right?" He stated calmly, not really expecting much of a response from the blonde.

"Hn, just don't get in my way… Dobe." Sasuke nearly sneered, instead just telling the hyperactive knucklehead the one thing.

There was no way he'd ever let anyone get in his way. He'd get his revenge one day -and if the other dragged him down? Well… He was an avenger for a reason, and he'd stop at nothing to get the bastard that'd had the gall to massacre his entire family and think he could get away with it.

" _What did you call me?!_ " Naruto bristled, turning to glare at the noirette as he slammed both hands on the desk. Between the two, similarly to Yamanaka Ino, Haruno Sakura was mourning the fact that she'd lost her biggest chance of getting closer to her precious  _Sasuke-kun_ , turning to glare at the blonde with annoyance as her aggravation hit a new high.

" _Shut up, Naruto!_ " The pink haired genin yelled, far too upset with the fact that she hadn't gotten to be on Sasuke's team...though at least Ino-pig or some other girl hadn't ended up being on the noirette's team either. That was the pinkette's only consolation as she fought tears of disappointment, refusing to sulk as she took her misplaced anger out on the blonde knucklehead beside her. Even as Naruto tried to defend against the pinkette that he had a crush on without hurting her.

Iruka sighed. Hopefully everything would work out -even with Naruto. Taking another breath to fortify the remaining patience he had left, he spoke again, completing the list of potential Genin Teams before setting the class free for lunch. "We'll be introducing your Jounin Sensei after break, so don't be late!" The Chuunin Sensei warned, shooting a disapproving look at the squabbling -though luckily no longer fighting- duo in front of him.

Trying not to sigh as most of the group scattered, he shook his head and left. He hadn't been able to pack a lunch today due to all the events that had occurred in the past few days. He had been planning to restock his fridge the day after Mizuki's little midnight betrayal, after all. But with his own injury impeding him and the Hokage calling him in along with the desk-work he did after and between class days, the Chuunin had unfortunately been far too busy to remember until he'd found his fridge all but empty that morning. Hopefully there wouldn't be too long a line at the restaurant not too far from the Academy and he could get a bento to go in case any of the students had any questions before break ended.

Letting one of his fellow Chuunin teachers know that he was heading out (and thus ending up with quite a few orders from some of the others that either hadn't bothered, were too lazy, or had -not so conveniently- 'forgotten' to bring their lunches once again), the brunette made his way to the closest restaurant that sold the most decent to-go Bento that he knew of.

* * *

 **I** n the meantime, as the newly minted Genin separated (or grouped up, as the case may be), Naruto made his way up to the roof to devour the packaged bread that was his lunch for the day, trying to decide what to do as he polished off his meal. Having escaped the classroom that had begun to fill with the chatter of new teammates (just as Sasuke had -if only to escaped his Kami-damned  _fangirls_ ), unaware of the figure that had slowly stood from their seat, taking their sweet time to stretch before bothering to look around with dull, slit-pupiled caramel eyes that, along with their owner, seemed perpetually tired or apathetic.

"..." Not finding the two that were the lethargic looking genin's new teammates, said genin resisted the urge to sigh and sat back down in their seat. Mentally shrugging, the dark-haired brunette took their time to unwrap the home-made bento that had been brought, deciding not to waste the time it would take to find the two far more well-known students who had clearly not understood that the lunch was meant for the newly minted Genin Teams to get to know their new partners.

The preteen, wearing charcoal black pants over navy blue shinobi sandals and a long-sleeved black ninja shirt with wire under-armor netting that revealed a thin midriff and shoulders, didn't even bother to look at the three other bento that sat beside said genin on the seat that, more often than not, remained empty.

There would be a chance to pass them on later if either of the other orphans were interested -along with the Jounin Sensei that would be taking said genin under their wing. The brunette had only made the extra's out of politeness after all, and if none of them wanted one that would just mean less cooking for the brunette to do -at least for the next few meals. It wasn't like their guardian would be back in the next few days unless they finished a mission early, after all.

Besides, Kohaku didn't really like socializing very much. It was difficult to tell whether something said was offensive or not at times, even if it wasn't meant to be. And that was even with all the people-watching the child did when not at home...

Outside around the Academy Grounds, Naruto (masquerading as Sasuke) interacted with the pinkette that he would soon be seeing far less of for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately for him, he would not only learn of the fact that his beloved Sakura seemed to truly despise him, but also the reason that he'd come to realize that he liked her. Too bad for the blonde that diarrhea caused by the expired milk he'd drunk earlier in the day would end up sending him to the nearest toilet even as the real Sasuke appeared before the pinkette, dismissing said girl until she said something unforgivable to the noirette.

Even as said events went on, however, the Hokage continued to show Team 7's soon-to-be Jounin Sensei around the jinchuuriki of the team's home (a pseudo-attempt to guilt trip the man he still worried about that would -no matter what the ex-AnBu captain said- still work on the socially stunted genius).

* * *

 **N** aruto peeked out into the hallway again, impatient to meet the Jounin Sensei who appeared to be running far too late for the blonde's liking. He, Sasuke, and Kohaku were the last three genin to remain. Even Iruka-sensei had already left (the man having waited until the last minute until he'd had to hurry out in order to avoid being late for the desk-job he worked at the Hokage Tower. As it was, the Chuunin would be cutting it very close as he barely made it in time to check himself in).

"Ughhh, why is Team 7's Jounin Sensei so damn late?!" The blonde exclaimed at last, all but tearing his shortly cropped hair out of impatience. "All the other teams have gone with their sensei's, and even Iruka-sensei's gone!" He sulked, not seeming to be aware that his outburst had drawn the attention of the two darker haired genin.

"..." Unfortunately for the blonde, both genin seemed to be quite happy to remain quiet and boring, though their reactions and actions towards the blonde seemed to differ. Sasuke being his usual asshole self, while Kohaku…

Well, the toffee-eyed genin seemed to be mute or something since the other hadn't said a single word as far as the blonde could remember, only nodding in acknowledgement when they'd all converged back in the classroom to meet up with their teams. Naruto really wasn't quite sure if the other really was just mute or simply stuck up (though thankfully not as bad as Sasuke was if he was).

Still, something about the other genin gave him the heebie-jeebies. Maybe it was the feeling that the other genin was like some kind of cat or other predator to the blonde's senses. The brunette always seemed so detached and uninterested in everything that went on and never seemed to have a single friend as far as the blonde could tell. Not like that bastard Sasuke who seemed to have fans following him around  _everywhere,_ even with his puffed up ego and chicken-butt hair.

In fact, the detached yet somehow curious slit-pupiled eyes (even his eyes were like a cat's! the blonde thought -not quite hysterically, but close enough to a feeling of panic that he had to quash the urge to get as far away from the creeper as he could. Not even Shino and his weird bug-hive body was so creepy! Those freaking  _eyes_ ) on his back made the genin want to shiver. Still, he repressed it, deciding to go through with his prank even as he ignored the itch he felt from the gaze boring into the back of his head.

He was sure that Sasuke was watching too, though the noirette was probably doing so with condescending black eyes as the blonde wedged the chalk-iest eraser he could find between the classroom's sliding door and the wall. Thinking about his prank, he snickered, feeling much better now that he wasn't thinking about annoying or creepy things.

"Heeheehee~ that's what you get for being late!" He grinned, jumping off the table that conveniently sat next to the doorway and making his way back towards his seat with a feeling of pride.

"Che, like a Jounin would fall for such a stupid trap," the killjoy Uchiha muttered, just loud enough to ensure that the words would travel, as Naruto scowled. Kohaku, now wearing a grey-ish, off-white jacket (somewhat reminiscent to the apparently classic Aburame coat) that seemed just a size or two big, seemed to lose interest as the blonde puffed up in response to the bastard's stupid logic.

Before anyone could say anything, however, a pale hand slid the door open, the eraser covering spiky silver hair in white chalk dust before bouncing off as the masked Jounin blinked.

Naruto burst into laughter, pointing at the now white haired Jounin. "You fell for it! You fell for it!" The blonde chanted, too busy laughing to really think about the potential consequences of his actions.

Sasuke frowned, sweating a little as he wondered at the Jounin's reliability, while Kohaku's face remained as blank as usual, apparently neither amused nor questioning as dark eyes stared.

The Jounin hummed, ignoring Naruto for the moment as he seemingly studied his new students, offering an insincere smile behind the mask he always wore that caused his single visible eye to curve into a crescent.

"How can I say this…?" He started at last, "My first impression is… I don't like you guys~" He announced, two out of three members of the new Genin Team sweating in response even as the last apparently reserved judgement. Ignoring the reactions to his seemingly careless remark, the man led the children (and they were still children, no matter that the law stated they were now legal adults with the hitaeate that adorned their bodies) to the roof.

* * *

 **K** akashi waited for all three genin to take a seat, having long since begun evaluating the trio and noting that they all seemed to be just as reported -with the exception of one Tsukino Kohaku. Who was, for whatever reason, carrying a somewhat bulky bundle. The Hatake's sharp nose couldn't seem to give him much information on the containers that were stacked inside said bundle. Three if he was correct (which, of course, he was quite sure he was). He didn't ask, however, even  _if_ he was a little curious about the anomaly.

Naruto's brash curiosity had already revealed that the other wouldn't be answering any questions after all. Even  _if_  there was a higher chance that the Jounin Sensei would be answered, unlike the loud blonde that had practically run circles around the Mikazuki heir. Oh, sure, she'd taken her mother's maiden name, but that didn't mean it wasn't still on her file. That wasn't even considering the distinctive markings of the Mikazuki Clan, dark markings under the eyes that could be mistaken for bags if not for the fact that said bags didn't actually exist. Not to mention the slit-pupiled eyes and distinctive shared scent that he recognized from his interactions with others of the clan that had existed until the night of the Kyuubi's attack.

Kakashi refused to think about that night however, the pain, though no longer fresh, was still a wound that the Emotionally Stunted Genius hadn't been able to get rid of. In fact, just looking at the son of his previous teacher made his heart twinge. But the Infamous Copy Ninja pushed it aside, even as he specifically avoided looking straight at the bright ball of mischievous sunshine that reminded him so much of those he'd lost.

Shaking the feeling off, he brightened the crescent-eyed smile that he'd been giving the trio for the past few minutes, even Sasuke being unable to help but shift a bit at the supposed awkwardness. The only one that didn't show any sign of discomfort was Kohaku, but if what he suspected of the apathetic seeming preteen was true, the stillness the girl showed only meant that she was taking things seriously.

Honestly, if Kakashi were any other person, he might have been weirded out by the child. As it was, the silver-haired Jounin was only slightly discomfited. After all, knowing was one thing, being right there to observe it himself…

Well, Kakashi might have admitted that even he felt a little uncomfortable by the gaze that was concentrated so strongly on his person, if only to himself. All the observations he'd had of the trio he'd made during the several hours he'd made the trio wait (all the while reading his precious  _Icha Icha_ , of course) had coincided with the files he'd been given on the three.

The Uchiha worried him of course, especially with the preteen's mentality (something that was apparently up to the equally emotionally stunted Jounin to handle, no matter that it was just a terrible idea all around). The self-sufficient little brunette that looked more like she might have been just another shinobi rather than a kunoichi like she actually was (something that anyone with discerning or sharp senses could -and should- have noticed), on the other hand, seemed to not care that her teammates had apparently decided she was male. Not at all bothered by the apparently lack of femininity that graced the child.

Then again, the girl, at least, seemed to be far more logical as well as being much calmer than the two boys on the team if the fact that she'd kept herself further back yet still somewhat in the middle of the last Uchiha and the rambunctious blonde was anything to go by. She hadn't said a single word so far, but Kakashi was sure that she wasn't mute…

Well, almost completely sure, anyway.

Clapping his hands together to ensure the trio's attention was still on him (which it of course already  _had_  been, even as he'd continued to draw the awkward silence out during his musings), Kakashi beamed once more. "Well then! Why don't start with introductions from you kids, hmm~?"

Dark eyes watched the Jounin with wary, narrow eyes. "...What do you want to know…?" He asked, still suspicious of the Jounin they'd gotten assigned as their team leader.

"How about your likes, dislikes, dreams for the future and things like that?" He hummed, purposely acting the way he was to further mislead the trio that just might possibly become his new Genin Team. (As much as it hurt to be so close to the blonde, it wasn't like he'd accept letting another teacher teach the Yondaime's legacy, after all. Hypocritical as it may be.)

Even as he spoke the blonde squinted at him, as if staring hard enough would give him all the answers. Crossing his legs and supporting himself with his arms, he leaned in to speak. "Hey-hey! Why don't  _you_  introduce yourself to us first?!" He all but demanded, the noirette beside him approving of the dobe's tactics for once.

Nodding, Sasuke continued to watch the Jounin suspiciously, sitting on the other side of the strange brunette that he'd all but dismissed already. At the very least the other wouldn't be as bad, considering that they at least wouldn't be dragging him down like the blonde would. On the other hand, the other could still do so if he was as average as the noirette believed due to having no real recollection of the slit-pupiled brunette… Better to believe they'd both just drag him down, if there was no proof otherwise.

"Oh, me~?" The silver haired Jounin mused, "Well, my name is Hatake Kakashi," he began. "I have no desire to tell you my likes and dislikes," he continued, seeming to think for a moment before continuing on, purposely leaving information out. If the trio had really done their homework, they would have known who he was already. But from what he could see, the only one that might have any prior knowledge about him -or any of the other more well-known Konoha Ninja- was Tsukino Kohaku. Especially considering who the child's guardian was -but he was getting off track. Continuing on, he went on to give the trio blank answers that would at the same time inform them of just what he wanted them to list when it came their turn. "Dreams for the future…" He hummed noncommittally before finishing up with a just as anticlimactic: "I have a lot of hobbies."

Seated in a loose but uneven ring, the trio shared a glance. Two dubious and unimpressed, and one just as unimpressed and blank if look on their face was any indication.

"In the end he didn't really tell us anything but his name, did he…?" Naruto muttered, even Sasuke nodding in agreement and disgruntlement as toffee-colored eyes flickered between their fellow genin to the Jounin.

"Saa, now for you. Why don't we start from the right?" the masked Shinobi suggested. The two boys shared a glance, the last member of the three-member team being more focused on their new Sensei, even if they still paid attention to the blonde that shifted his hitaeate in what appeared to be preparation for his introduction.

"Yosh! My name's Uzumaki Naruto! I like Cup Ramen," he started, grinning at man. "What I like even more than that, though, is when Iruka-sensei pays for my Ramen! I don't like waiting the three minutes for Ramen to cook, and my dream…" He took a deep breath, confidence clear as he firmly announced his dream. "I'm going to surpass the Hokage, and then have the people of this Village acknowledge my existence!" He all but shouted, a look of determination on his face that, coupled with the straightening of his back and the confidence he exuded, could almost make the man believe that the blonde would someday have what it took to follow in his father's footsteps.

Even surprised as he was, Kakashi couldn't help the fondness that crept into his expression, though he covered the moment with a blink. For a moment, the silverette had believed that all the blonde thought about was Ramen, but this clearly proved him wrong, the slate-eyed Jounin mused, chagrinned.

"Uhm, Hobbies…" The blonde continued, ending the moment of inspiration as he slumped a bit, crossing his arms in puzzled thought. "Pranks? I guess…"

Kakashi sighed, rubbing his head and sending some of the chalk that didn't seem to want to leave completely everywhere. Well, he probably should have expected it, to be honest, but then, it had been such a juvenile tactic and he'd  _already known_  about it. Still, it did explain quite a bit about the abundance of pranks that seemed to have occurred even more often in the recent years.

"Well then, how about we have the moody one go next?" He smiled, sitting back against the railing.

Dark eyes met his, and the man almost frowned behind his mask.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke," the noirette began, eyes hard and face partially hidden by the hands clasped before him, elbows resting just above his knees. "There are a lot of things I dislike, and I don't particularly like anything. I wouldn't call it a dream, but I do have an ambition.

"And that is… the resurrection of my clan -and to kill a certain person." The last Uchiha spoke shortly, tone clipped, a heavy aura pressing down around him as the other three stared, even Kohaku's caramel eyes boring into the self-proclaimed avenger.

Though it wasn't clear what the Mikazuki heir was thinking, Kakashi looked as if that had been pretty much what he'd expected to hear. Naruto's reaction being a bit more obvious in the way he shuddered and inched just a little further from noirette.

Sasuke didn't seem to notice, too lost in thought as the frown he wore turned as dark as his emotions. His introspection only broken when the only Jounin and actual adult of the group spoke up once more.

"Alright… And how about we have the last member of our little team speak up now," He continued calmly, not quite asking so much as stating.

"..." For a moment, the silver-haired Jounin thought she wouldn't answer, but much to his -and the others'- surprise, the brunette that had been silent up until now finally spoke. "Tsukino Kohaku," the soft voice that sounded too close to belonging to either gender sounding just loudly enough for the three males to hear. "I like taking naps," she continued quietly, voice smooth if clearly disused for the most part. "I dislike socializing, being woken, or bothered," the brunette told them, keeping her words as short as she could while still being polite. She hadn't shared much that couldn't be figured out just by watching her or which could be used against her, really. Something that was more habit than anything. The less people knew about her, the less they would try to bother her. But with this being her team for the foreseeable future, she felt she at least owed them  _some_  information, sparse as it may be.

Besides, Kohaku had never been very good at vocalizing, so it'd be easier for them to figure it out themselves as they spent more together (something that would, unfortunately, be very likely considering how Konoha ran itself).

"Dreams…" She paused, a single hand moving from its place in her lap to touch the Hitaeate she'd hung around her neck. Deciding not to answer it since even she wasn't quite sure what it would be herself (to protect her precious people -or rather, person? To be left alone? She honestly didn't know), moving on, the tawny-eyed brunette gave her team a slight shrug, chin-length hair bobbing just slightly from the slight head tilt that had occurred instinctively, just prior to the shrug. "I like reading... and cooking," she said at last, seeming to just remember the package that had been the source of quite a bit of curiosity -even if it'd been forgotten in favor of the Jounin Sensei's introductions.

Untying the somewhat thick cloth she'd tied around the trio of uneaten bento, she held the square-ish containers out to her new team. "This…" She started, holding it up towards the trio of males that she would have to acquaint herself with, an unsure look on her face. Words awkward and almost stilted as slit-pupiled toffee-colored eyes stared resolutely at the stack of bento.

"For you all," she murmured, letting her words die, silence encompassing the roof-top as a gentle breeze blew past, brushing against all of their hair. It was said that gifts between new people were more likely to foster some kind of...amiability (she didn't particularly care about 'making friends', after all). And since Kohaku was resigned to having to -somehow- get along with her teammates, she had prepared the trio of bento early in the morning before heading to school (for ease of career if nothing else -like she'd said, she wasn't exactly fond of socializing, after all… with the exception of her uncle, but  _family_ was different, and it...wasn't really socializing…? As far as she was aware, at least).

A slightly surprised look adorned all three of the male members. Blue eyes staring widely at the offering, while black remained unreadable, and slate only looked mildly surprised.

So that's what had been inside the bundle, Kakashi mused, even as Naruto gave a shout of excitement and asked if he could really take one, and if the brunette was ' _really, really_  sure' he could. The only answer to the excited question being a nod as toffee eyes refused to look at rest of their team.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise," Kakashi mused, experience telling him that the brunette was embarrassed if the slight pink tinge against her cheeks was anything to go by. Walking towards the trio as the other two genin accepted their bento (one excitedly, and one almost reluctantly though he did at least thank the girl), Kakashi accepted the last with a ruffle of the only girl's hair.

As much as the girl seemed like she might be agender or even gender neutral, it was possible that it was something the child might grow out of later (or never, but in his experience it tended to be later). The Jounin had known a few people that didn't seem to care much about their gender, few as they were. One being a Jounin that was quite open to crossdressing for missions, and didn't seem to care much about being male or female, the other being completely agender (not including certain AnBu members he knew of, of course). It was rare, but it did happen occasionally.

"Wow, this looks good!" Naruto exclaimed, bringing the others' attention to him as caramel eyes finally looking up, startled by the hair ruffle as well as the exclamation. "Did you make this, Kohaku?!" Bright blue eyes sparkled, staring at the brunette that he'd seen a new facet of, looking even more awed when the brunette nodded slowly.

Seeming to hesitate, the other genin spoke up at last, even Sasuke discreetly cracking his own open out of curiosity. "I...was going to share them during break," the brunette explained awkwardly, spots of red appearing high on the girl's cheeks even as she looked away.

Kakashi had to resist the urge to crack his own open since he could smell the other two's clearly enough, and could see with his own (uncovered) eye just what was inside the bento. From the smell (likely the containers sealed scent in, which he probably should have expected considering what clan the girl came from, now that he thought about it), he could tell that both of the other containers contained the same things. So there was really no need for him to open his own. And looking at Naruto's (Sasuke had only taken a peek and shut his own), he could see that there was plenty of rice, what looked (and smelled) like chicken, and other vegetables (a stir-fry?). From what he could tell, the bento looked quite balanced, something that actually surprised him. It was almost impressive, he thought, partially at the thought the girl had put into making the food….as well as the speed and gusto that Naruto was eating his own.

"Ish'ush 'uh-rish-ush!" The blonde shouted between gobbling the food, unfortunately also proving that he'd never been raised to understand that you weren't supposed to be talking while eating at the same time. A matter proven when the blue-eyed genin choked for a moment, hitting his chest a few times to dislodge what was stuck in his throat before polishing off the rest in record speed. "Ah~ that was great!" The Uzumaki grinned, sitting back supported by his arms as the emptied bento box sat in the orange-wearing genin's lap.

On the other side of the brunette, Sasuke gave the blonde a disgusted look. "That was disgusting, Dobe. Don't you know anything about manners?" He sneered, resisting the urge to inch further away from the blonde though he did seem to holding his own lunch somewhat protectively.

There had been  _tomatos_  in the scrambled egg, and smaller half-cut grape tomatoes in the vegetable stir-fry. The karaage looked good too, actually, but the noirette wasn't about to say anything since it didn't look like anything was poisoned (though he doubted Tsukino would want to kill him off, anyways. There was really no reason or motive for it).

"What'd you say, bastard?!" The blonde exclaimed, straightening to glare at the noirette before appearing to think there was something more important to do. "Hey, hey, Kohaku! Can you make more of those bento?! That was really good!" He exclaimed, eyes wide and sparkling like brilliant aquamarine gems as he leaned towards the brunette...who leaned a little further back, looking somewhat alarmed by the close proximity.

"Maa, I'm sure Kohaku here'll do it if *she feels like it," the Jounin spoke, clasping a hand on the sparkling blonde's shoulder and edging him a bit further away from the relieved brunette. "However, there's still something important that needs to be discussed before we can do anything else," he hummed, still standing as he smiled the soon-to-be-familiar one eyed smile at the trio.

"Huh?" Naruto blinked, "Hey, where'd your bento go?" The blonde asked, somehow managing to notice that the silverette's had disappeared.

Kakashi hummed, "I'm sure I'll have time to enjoy my bento later. For now, however…" He trailed of warningly, the trio before him straightening at the serious tone, despite the Jounin relaxing his aura a bit as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. He'd already sealed his bento away while the trio had been distracted, and watching as Sasuke and Naruto put their bento's aside (one, of course, still practically untouched aside from the shifted lid whilst the other was all but empty) to pay attention.

"Now, we'll be starting our duties as Shinobi as of tomorrow," the Jounin told them, having somehow managed to make his way back to the railing to sit down before any of the Genin could really notice.

Bright blue eyes and a wide grin met the slate-eyed ninja's proclamation. "Aw yeah! What kind of duties?!" exclaimed Naruto excitedly.

"Maa, first we're going to be doing something with just the four of us," he told them as Naruto settled, still fidgeting as he stared with bright eyes.

"What is it? What is it?!" He asked, clearly excited.

Kakashi allowed for a moment of pause, giving his next two words a sense of importance.

"Survival Training." The man announced dramatically.

"Sur...vival...training…?" Naruto questioned, a clearly confused look on his face. Neither of his other teammates said anything, both of the darker haired members of the team more focused on their Sensei.

"This isn't normal training, of course~ This time, I'll be your opponent," The silverette smiled.

"Then…! Then what is it?" Naruto asked, seemingly causing the Jounin to chuckle in response.

Dark eyes narrowed even as caramel sharpened, zeroing in on their Sensei's shaking shoulders.

"Wh- What's so funny!" Naruto demanded after a moment when it became clear that no one else would say anything.

"Ah, well… It's just that, when I tell you this, you guys will totally freak~" The man smiled, eye once again shaped into a crescent of short, silver lashes.

"F...freak…?" Naruto asked uneasily, fidgeting in his seat, eyes wide.

"You see...of the 27 graduated, only 9 are to be chosen to become Genin," he told them, creating the illusion that he was looming over them. "The rest? Well,  _they'll_  be sent straight back to the Academy~ This training is a very difficult exam with a failure rate of over 66% after all~"

A look of shock crossed the whiskered blonde's face. Sasuke's own expression wasn't quite as shocked so much as surprised, with Kohaku's being even less so. Whether it was a shock to her or not, or simply just a mild surprise was difficult to tell. But, having watched the trio for a while, Kakashi was at least somewhat confident that the child was surprised. It had been kept out of most of the books, after all (the only exception being certain journals usually kept private by their owners, and records kept by the Hokage for filing).

Of course, if she was as studious as he believed her to be, then she would probably have at least a vague idea of said information.

Kakashi laughed, "I told you you'd freak out~" He smiled, even as the obviously building outburst escaped the genin as he changed position to yell.

"What?! No way!" He exclaimed, clearly shocked by this news, "But we worked so hard!" He yelled, as if it would change anything. "Then what was the point of graduation?!" He all but demanded.

Kakashi hummed. "Ah, that~?" He mused, " _That_  was simply to select who'd have the chance of becoming Genin," he explained, enjoying his trolling of the genin perhaps just a tad too much.

"Ughh, What?!" The blonde exclaimed, clearly still somewhat disbelieving of the situation.

Unsurprisingly, however, the only one that didn't seem to show any anxiety was Tsukino Kohaku. Or perhaps she was anxious and he simply wasn't used to reading her expressions (or lack thereof) enough to be able to tell just yet. The only thing he could see on the girl's face was a look of deep thought that didn't really tell him anything.

"In any case, you'll have to show your real skills on the training ground tomorrow. Bring all the Shinobi tools you have," he announced, smoothly running through the rest of the explanation he'd given to every other genin team that had been handed to him prior. Of course, all of them had failed, but then, Kakashi had (slightly) higher hopes for this group. "Ah," he added, as if just remembering something important. "Skip breakfast, you might just end up throwing up otherwise~" He smiled. Pulling out a few sheets of paper, he passed them out to the shaking Uzumaki, the somewhat anxious looking Uchiha, and the stone-faced heir of the Mikazuki clan -a clan that would be all but extinct if its' only other member ended up dying before he could sire his own progeny as well.

"The details are on these papers, and don't be late tomorrow~" He practically sang, disappearing almost as soon as the last sheet had left his fingers, leaving only a trio of genin staring at their own individual sheets of paper with a time and place noted. He'd even been kind enough to give directions!

Really, Kakashi was just such a kind person…

More importantly, however, he kind of wanted to try that bento. Not until the kids had all separated and gone home, however, the silverette mused, scent and presence pulled in tightly enough that not even an Inuzuka would be able to figure out he was there if he didn't want them to.

Watching as Naruto and Sasuke squabbled over the bento that Sasuke had yet to touch, aside from finding out what had been in it, and Kohaku doing her best to separate the duo despite her blank face and reluctance to speak, Kakashi almost chuckled.

At least it looked like this year's set would be far more interesting than the last~

Maybe they'd have an easier time of passing the test if things went well. But considering the fact that two of the members clashed quite often, and the last preferred to stay out of the way along with being far more reluctant to speak than the silverette expected, the upcoming team looked to be one that would be quite amusing, to say the least.


	2. Bell Test (Part I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naruto's finally gotten his hitae-ate and been assigned to a team! Even if it's with Stupid Sasuke and that Weird Guy. But wait, he's not a genin yet...? What do you mean there's still another test!?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention it before, but this AU is slow-build. So it'll probably take a while or at least seem to before it derails from canon a bit (of course, things not affected by the fact Sakura didn't end up on Team 7 will probably remain the same, especially if it happened before everything).
> 
> Secondly, Sasuke is a pain to write for, and I am sorry if I can't do the (little brat of a) character justice. Also, no pairing are decided, period. Unless it was pre-Kyuubi Attack, in which case it was already there, so oh well. Honestly, I'm not 100% sure where I'm going with this anymore. I have some things planned, but not everything. Still, as long as find myself enjoying the writing aspect of it, I guess it doesn't quite matter.
> 
> As always, this is un-beta'd, and if anyone catches any mistakes, please do let me know!
> 
> As for other things...well, I forgot to mention last chapter, but the little asterisk before 'she' when Kakashi was speaking:
> 
> [[ "Hey, hey, Kohaku! Can you make more of those bento?! That was really good!" [Naruto] exclaimed, eyes sparkling and wide as he leaned towards the brunette...who leaned a little further back, looking somewhat alarmed by the close proximity.
> 
> "Maa, I'm sure Kohaku here'll do it if *she feels like it," the Jounin spoke, clasping a hand on the sparkling blonde's shoulder and edging him a bit further away from the relieved brunette... ]]
> 
> From the scene above, the asterisk is meant as a note for the fact that he's not actually using the word 'she', since Naruto seems to have a mainly Asian language (and of course, assuming that everyone speaks a common language, that being some kind of alternate pseudo-Japanese or Chinese), in which*she is either pronounced the same as 'he' or her, his, their, etc. Or, like in the Japanese language, is usually left out and implied. Hence why the kiddo's still haven't figured out that Ko's a girl. (I'm actually still trying to decide if I should make it some kind of running gag, but I guess we'll just wait and see if things go to keikaku/plan.)
> 
> Now onto the Chapter!

* * *

**I** t was over. Kohaku couldn't help but to feel relieved, to be honest. After all, they'd come  _so_  close to failing despite everything, but somehow… well,  _somehow_  they'd managed to do it. Maybe not in the way they'd expected, but Kakashi-sensei (the Jounin had insisted now that they were his 'cute little Genin') had still passed them nonetheless.

Of course, that didn't mean their teamwork hadn't still needed some work, but it was probably better than what any other combination of said team might have been otherwise. Still, to think that they'd ended up cutting it so close…

Honestly speaking, the brunette was  _very_  reluctant to go through all of that  _ever again_.

* * *

**S** ix was a hellish time to have to meet up. The fact that they'd had to awaken even before that had probably made it even worse (not even mentioning the fact that Kakashi would, of course, be arriving late). Still, they'd managed it somehow, even if Sasuke was the only one that looked anywhere near awake as the trio met at the specified training ground in the note.

"M-ugh- morning," Naruto told the other blearily, unable to help the yawn that cut through his greeting.

"..." Sasuke, that asshole, hadn't said anything at all. Nor had he even shown any recognition other than his usual silent, bastardy presence. Still, Naruto was far too tired to really pick a fight for the moment. Oh, well...

"...Good Morning," intoned a quiet voice, surprising Naruto (and gaining a brief flicker of a glance from the raven haired avenger beside them) and cheering the blonde up at least a little despite his sleepiness and hunger.

Well, at least he didn't look quite as bad as Kohaku, though, seeing as the poor guy looked like he had gotten even less sleep than the blonde had. Still, he was so sleepy….not to mention hungry, the blonde sighed. Only to offer a sheepish grin to the others as his stomach growled loudly.

"...Uzumaki-san, are you alright…?" The tone of concern in the otherwise blank faced brunette surprised the blonde, but he still laughed sheepishly.

"Ughhh, yeah. Sorry. Just kinda hungry," the blonde admitted as the sun began to rise. By this point, fifteen minutes had passed since they'd met up, but still Kakashi-sensei didn't seem to have arrived yet. "But man, that stupid Sensei, he's late! Even though he was the one to say not to be, huh?" He offered, feeling a bit more awake out of sheer irritation and bravado.

"..." His stomach growled again, and he sighed. Man, he didn't even have the energy to complain anymore…

"...Here…" Looking up, the blonde found himself staring at...a plastic-wrapped bar?

"...But, Kakashi-sensei said not to eat anything…" The blonde started, giving the brunette (and the bar) a regretful look. "We really shouldn't-" His stomach grumbled again, and the blonde winced. Ughhh…

"...Uzumaki-san," the brunette started, voice surprisingly firm as the surprised blonde looked back up at the brunette. "Hatake-san said not to eat breakfast," tired caramel eyes seemed to bore into the blonde, as if there were some other meaning to his words. Still holding the bar out to the quizzical blonde, the other seemed to realize that he still didn't get it, because he spoke up again. "This is a  _snack_ ," he clarified.

"But...we might throw up…" The blonde continued unsurely. His resolve was already wavering at the tantalizing nutrient bar that was still being offered to him, though.

"...It's still best to have something  _to_  throw up, than to have nothing even if we did, Uzumaki-san."

"...'s just Naruto," the blonde started weakly as he realized that the other had been calling him 'Uzumaki' this entire time. Biting his lip in indecision, he continued to hesitate.

His stomach growled again, and Naruto's walls broke. "Oh, fine, but if we get in trouble 's not my fault…" he protested weakly, taking the bar and practically tearing into it.

Oh  _man_ , that felt way better! His stomach wasn't complaining anymore, and he felt way more energetic now!

Hearing a snort, much brighter blue eyes glared at the condescending raven-haired male that might just (unfortunately) end up his teammate. "What the hell, Sasuke-teme! Why you always gotta be-"

A loud growl interrupted his words and he blinked. Wait a minute…

That definitely hadn't been him. His stomach was (definitely not satisfied, but) content, so there was no way it'd be his stomach so…. Eyes trailing towards the direction he'd heard the sound from, the blonde snort.

"What, were you just hungry too? Man, why didn't you just say so, you bastard! You don't have to be all condescending and shit!" The blonde declared, earning a dark glare from the ravenette.

"I was  _not_ -" the Uchiha started to speak, only to be interrupted once more.

Naruto burst into laughter, almost completely missing the spots of red that decorated the raven-haired genin's cheeks.

Opening his mouth to retort, Sasuke's words died as another bar appeared before him.

"I don't need…" he started halfheartedly, already feeling his stomach rebelling at his decision. His will weakened despite Naruto's continued laughter (the idiot was  _still_ rolling around the ground, clutching his stomach while trying to wipe his eyes simultaneously, that  _Dobe_ ). The unimpressed toffee colored eyes only continued the job, as their owner's expression promised not to be as judgmental as the biased blonde, either.

Sighing, the Uchiha snagged the bar and opened it. "Only because your explanation was logical, and  _I'm hungry_ ," he declared, shooting a venomous sneer at the blonde whose laughter was only now dying down.

"Yeah, yeah. Just hurry it up before that stupid scarecrow gets here! I don't want to get in trouble because he showed up before you could even finish a stupid bar," Naruto declared  _maganimous...magnanimal…_ He was being nice, okay! Even that stupid bastard should be able to understand that!

"Che," Sasuke didn't say anything, but he polished the bar off in record time, stuffing the wrapper into his pocket to get rid of later.

"Whatever,  _Dobe_." Another sneer.

" _What'd you say, you bastard…?!_ "

Clearly the energy boost the so-called 'snacks' had given them had brought them back to their normal selves. Kohaku almost regretted the decision when things got even louder than the stomach sounds...but at least it wouldn't make her hungry again prematurely, the brunette mused, settling down on the grass beside her bag (it always paid to be extra prepared, after all), as she chewed on another bar and watched the arguing duo.

Really, why the two couldn't get along even for a short amount of time was beyond the brunette. But if they were going to keep arguing she wasn't sure they'd be able to keep their energy up before the silver-haired Jounin arrived.

Making a decision, the brunette practically depleted the stock of nutrient bars she'd allotted for the day, throwing two more at each of her teammates. The quiet was almost worth it as the two catch the bars, if only out of habit (Naruto scrambling a bit to catch his before they fell). Noting the looks from the two (one somewhat wary and quizzical, while the other was simply confused), she blinked.

"Just in case," was all she said as the two exchanged an amazingly non-hostile look and put them away.

Best not to let Kakashi know about them after all, and it wasn't like the brunette's logic wasn't sound. Lucky for them, the Jounin hadn't expected much from them to begin with, and so hadn't decided to hide himself and watch them just yet.  _That_  would be saved for the last hour and half or so -possibly even two hours- before he deemed to show himself.

Nearly forty minutes had already passed by this point, but the trio of genin were simply too distracted to care as they settled into a somewhat awkward silence.

Too tired to really even care, Kohaku blinked slowly, bleary eyes and the warm of the rising sun on her back far too comfortable for her to really care much as she began to nod off. And despite the two males of the group trying to ignore each other, it would be the sound of a dull 'fwump' and a body falling that would finally catch their attention once again, and they turned in the direction of the sound to assess the situation.

For the second time that day, the two exchanged a glance of mutual agreement.

"...Man, that guy is weird…" Naruto muttered, scratching his hair as Sasuke nodded. Neither moved to wake the brunette, however. They could do that when Kakashi-sensei arrived.

Kami knew the brunette needed it. The dark bags (or so they assumed of the markings) under the caramel eyed genin's eyes being further -if incorrect- proof to the two, though their reasoning might have been different.

Sasuke thinking that the other would only slow him down otherwise, while Naruto figured he could just be nice and wake the poor guy up when Kakashi got here as thanks for the nutrient bars.

By the time Kakashi finally bothered to show himself, both the blonde and raven-haired boys would have dozed off at least once during the five hour wait, while Kohaku would continue to sleep straight through it (dozing under the sun or shade was a favored pastime, after all).

* * *

**W** hen Kakashi finally arrived at the training grounds (of course, scent and chakra both tightly coiled to avoid detection just yet) to observe the trio of genin that might -just  _might_  mind you- become his first genin team, the silver-haired Jounin was amused to find that two of three genin were practically asleep.

Well, almost sleep in the case of one Uzumaki Naruto, he corrected when the blonde shifted and yawned, glancing around blearily before he addressed the still standing Uchiha.

"Ugh, is he seriously still not here yet…?" The blonde asked sleepily, seeming to stare enviously as the only girl of the group continued to sleep peacefully. Why the boys were letting her sleep, Kakashi wasn't quite sure (though he could guess), but it was at least somewhat amusing.

"Hn," was the only answer the Uchiha offered. Though the fact that he'd made any attempt at doing so surprised the Jounin. Just what had happened between the two to make them so amicable…? Or was it just that they were simply too tired to argue? The silver-haired Jounin had to wonder.

Although, the fact that Kohaku could be so comfortably asleep and clearly dead to the world might have disappointed the Jounin (who'd been hoping to bother the kids with his lateness), he was still more amused that the other two had let her sleep.

Glancing at the trio between reading his beloved  _Icha Icha Paradise_ , the Jounin kept his ears concentrated on the trio to catch any changes in the kids he planned to take under his wing should things turn out well. Still, it was amusing to listen to the apparently one-sided conversation that was going on in Naruto's attempt to stay awake.

"Geez, that Scarecrow is super late," he muttered, head nodding a bit despite his attempts to straighten his back, arms resting on his knees as he shifted his pack, legs pulled up to his chest.

"Hn." 'Obviously,' the Hatake translated, flipping to the next page with a silent giggle.

"It's been four hours!" The blonde complained, sighing and stretching his limbs when it became clear to the blonde that staying in the same position made staying awake a futile effort.

"..." 'Four and a half, actually, but it's not like  _I'm_  counting,' Kakashi imagined, listening to the rustle of clothes as the last Uchiha shifted.

"Dammit, why is he still not here yet…" moaned the blonde, just as Kakashi read to where…  _Oh_ , he snickered silently, he was almost at the hot spring scene.

"...Hn," 'Hell if I know, but it's getting hella annoying standing here and waiting.'

"Man, is that  _all_  you can say, bastard?" Naruto scowled at the noirette's back, tone not heated in the least.

"..." Kakashi giggled silently, the clothes were coming off again,  _boy_  were things going to be getting...  _hot_ , he grinned.

No pun intended (or was it?).

"Ughhhh, I'm sooooo hungry…" The blonde groaned, pressing a hand against his stomach as if it would help. Clearly sulking, he shifted so he could safely flop onto his back. (Kakashi, of course, had yet to realize that the trio had bent the words he'd given them and that Naruto was actually mourning the loss of the -admittedly bland- nutrient bars the still sleeping Kohaku had given them.)

" _Che_ ," Ohh, the raven was annoyed~~ Kakashi grinned, eyes trailing back to the potentially explosive situation between the two boys. That had been clear irritation in the Uchiha's tone, and Naruto's blue eyes were flashing now too. (Again, he remained unaware that it was more Sasuke's way of stating he was  _not_  giving him either of his….not that he could have, he'd polished his own off just before Kakashi had decided to leave his apartment.)

" _Bastard!_ " Naruto started, giving the raven a hot look, only to wilt as his stomach grumbled. Poor thing had high metabolism, no doubt not eating breakfast would be near  _crippling_  for the boy…

Well, okay, the ex-AnBu captain was just being dramatic. It wouldn't be so bad once the boy had some adrenaline running through his veins, but it would still mean none of them would be able to go at full strength.

" _Uuughhhh….._ I just want to get this  _over_  with already…" The blonde moaned morosely, curling back into himself as if doing so would be able to conserve his energy. Even Sasuke seemed to agree as his shoulders wilted (or hunched, same thing really, in this case). The ravenette giving a slight sigh that was pretty much hidden in the far louder and gustier sigh the blonde gave.

Kakashi skimmed past the next chapter as things wound down once again. He'd read it quite a few times already, but Jiraiya's writing never failed to capture his attention...Or, well, some of it once he'd read it a few times. The words being more reminders for him than to be read once he recalled the basics.

Well, there  _were_  a few books in Jiraiya's series by now, so was it really so surprising that even the copy-nin needed reminders now and then? And it wasn't like he planned to memorize it with his Sharingan. (Obito could remain the  _pure untouched virgin_  he remembered, thank you very much. He was  _not_  going to further corrupt his previous teammate!)

Slipping the book shut as the time hit eleven, he brought himself just outside of the training grounds and removed the jutsu he'd been using to keep his presence hidden, making sure to remain just outside any of their ranges (or more importantly, Kohaku and Naruto's ranges, since they had higher senses, and Sasuke had yet to learn to track Chakra as far as he was aware) before  _slowly_  walking over, unsealing the backpack full of bento's that he'd prepared just for the occasion.

Maybe not as good as homemade food (Kakashi wasn't the best cook, after all, hence the restaurant-brought bento), but it'd probably be good enough for a few hungry genin. As he'd been doing so, he completely missed the short exchange in which Naruto mourned his long-since eaten nutrient bars. The things had been filling for a while, but for a growing boy, they really hadn't been enough. Something even Sasuke agreed to, even if his metabolism wasn't quite as high as the blonde's...

* * *

**T** he first thing Kohaku would notice upon awakening would be the slowly clarifying buzz of background noise that would reveal itself to her senses. The next would be the realization that she'd fallen asleep as she slowly straightened, sitting up in a single motion that brought the other two's short conversation to a halt.

She wasn't quite sure what had woken her (something she'd later on realize was actually the not-yet-familiar steps entering the range of her senses), but she felt far more rested than she had upon awakening in the far-too-cursedly-early hours of the day.

Naruto and Sasuke both snapped their heads in her direction, surprised by the sudden awareness of the genin they still believed to be a boy.

"Hey, hey! You're finally awake!" Naruto grinned, plastering the expression over the slight grimace he would've made otherwise as his hunger made itself known. Thankfully not nearly as loudly as before seeing as the blonde had finally figured out a position that would keep his stomach quiet.

Part of it being from experience, seeing as Naruto had known hunger before. And this really wasn't as bad, to be honest, but his stomach could still be super loud when it wanted to be, unfortunately for the blonde.

Sasuke's only reaction once he figured that it was just the brunette was a quiet "Hn" as he, too, remained in a position that he felt would make his hunger less obvious, arms crossed and stomach clenched as he refused to show any signs of weakness.

Even Kohaku was getting hungry again, to be honest, having already digested the bar she'd eaten before falling asleep quite a while ago. The only reason  _her_  body hadn't made any complaints being the fact that her brain was technically shut down to the bare minimum as she went through a sleeping cycle. Now that she was awake (and aware), her stomach was starting to realize that its calls for food would be noticed if it did.

Blinking slowly at the too-bright and sunny blonde and glancing at the raven-haired Uchiha that refused to look at either of them (to the point of having his back turned), she opened her mouth to try to slow the flow of chatter that had only steadily built from the blonde's lips, only to stop as the sound of a leaf crunching met her ears.

"-and he's already  _five hours late_ , can you believe it? And-" It'd taken a moment, but eventually Naruto had realized that Kohaku hadn't been listening, as he paused in his chatter. "... _Ne, ne,_  Kohaku! What is it? Is there something interesting over there?" Naruto asked, clearly curious as he moved to take a look at whatever it was that had the brunette's attention.

Sasuke gave the two a sideways glance, curious despite not wanting to admit it.

Kohaku didn't answer though, a blank look that the two would later begin to recognize as a frown from the barely-there tilt of the lip forming on the toffee eyed genin's face. Eyes sharp as she tried to pinpoint the sound, she eventually came to note the sound of sandals moving against grass, gaze boring into the direction that they were coming from.

By now, even Naruto was starting to notice it as he focused his senses, face scrunched as if it would help his sight any, only to twitch slightly as his ears became the first to catch anything. Still curious, and yet still completely unwilling to admit it, Sasuke turned, narrowed eyes sharpening as his superior sight caught a hint of silver just past a few of the trees that made the 'official', slightly winding path to the training grounds.

Soon enough, all three could clearly see and hear the Jounin, as he offered a one eyed smile , raising a casual hand in greeting.

"Hey there, kiddo's. Good Morning!" He offered, seemingly without a care and unaware of the fact that he was over five hours late at this point.

Three sets of unimpressed eyes met his, and the Jounin almost sweat a little.

* * *

" _ **Y**_ _OU'RE LATE!_ " Naruto exclaimed, a scowl decorating the blondes face in the clearest indication of the group's mood as even  _Sasuke_  stated his displeasure despite the fact that the blonde beside him had drowned it out with his own. Kohaku hadn't been completely unaware when Naruto had started babbling at her, and the fact that Kakashi was  _five hours late_  meant that she really wasn't impressed. She wasn't mad, however, not like Naruto or the scowling Uchiha that seemed to be glaring into the man's soul...

Actually, she wouldn't be surprised if the Sharingan  _could_  do that, if she were being honest -but that was neither here nor there. For the moment, she shot the man an irritated look as he sighed. Still, she couldn't really stay mad, even if  _five hours_  had been more than pushing it. She'd known that the Jounin had a habit of never being on time, but five hours?  _Really?_

Resisting the urge to sigh herself, Kohaku resigned herself to her possible future of loud teammates and late Sensei. Still, even she deadpanned at the excuse he tried to give.

"Well, you see… a black cat crossed my path…" The excuse was never finished, but all of the genin could figure out the rest as two-thirds of the genin glared, the last sending the Jounin a clearly disapproving look that bored into the man just as much as the glares did. (There was an  _actual_  frown and everything!) Seriously, if that was the lame sort of excuse he was going for, she wasn't sure being a genin student under the man would be worth the trouble.

Especially seeing as the man had had the gall to make her wake up at  _inhuman hours_  just to make them wait hours past the rising of the sun without even allowing them to eat an actual meal before all of said -excuse her language, please-  _bullshit_.

She couldn't even stay mad once she remembered the short if concise note that had been left on the dining table for her to find. Six words,  _six_ , and a henohenomoheji that had been scrawled on a small square of paper left on top of the empty container. ' _The bento was delicious. Sensei approves_.' Really?  _Really?_

The only way said box could have been left there, would have been if the man had  _broken into the apartment_  to so do as well! Wasn't breaking and entering supposed to be a crime?

Okay, so maybe her look had been a little stronger than she'd noted, but honestly? That devil of a Jounin probably deserved it. Especially if those were the kind of flimsy excuses that he gave  _everyone_  for his lateness.

Smoothing her expression and blinking in an attempt to relax her eyes, she watched as the man cleared his throat, setting an alarm clock atop one of the wooden posts that served as training dummies.

"...Maa," he started, setting the alarm on said timepiece as he continued to speak. "Yosh, it's set for noon," he continued, pulling out a set of jingling bells that he dangled from his fingers for the three puzzled genin to see.

"Your true task for today will be to take these bells from me by noon," he informed them, shaking the bells to make them jingle once more. "Those who fail, get no lunch," he continued. "In fact, I'm going to be tying whoever doesn't to one of those stumps and  _eat my lunch right in front you_ ," he told them.

...Yep, definitely deserved it, Kohaku thought as all three made various expressions ranging from her own deadpan to the horrified and clearly unimpressed. Beside her, Naruto groaned as his stomach growled, both of his fellow genin's expressing their displeasure at the announcement at the same time despite their owners' attempts to look casual.

The thoughts running through their heads were probably obvious to the trained Jounin.

As the two dark-haired genin were trying to get over the somewhat embarrassing episode, Naruto blinked, tilting his head quizzically as he finally made note of something important.

"Huh… But wait, why are there only two bells?!" exclaimed the blonde as he pointed at said set of bells dangling from the man's fingers.

Kakashi smiled, clearly having been waiting for the outburst as he purposely jingled the bells again.

"Hm~ Well," he started as if musing, though the jovial expression soon turned rather serious, as he spoke. "There are only two so at the very least,  _someone_  will have to go the logs~" He practically sang, shaking the bells again. "Said person will, of course, have failed the 'mission'...and will be sent back to the Academy~"

* * *

**W** earing a dark grin, Kakashi had to resist the urge to giggle (giggling wasn't very threatening, after all...well, not  _usually_ , anyway) as he continued on. "It could be one of you, or it could be  _all three_  of you. Who knows~?" Smoothing his expression back into that of his usual expression of boredom and neutrality (one that suddenly brought the words of a far-too-green fellow Jounin to mind -'so  _hip_  and  _cool_ , my rival!'- accompanied by the obnoxious laugh that made him want to twitch). "Feel free to use your weapons…

"After all, you won't be able to take these bells unless you come at me intending to kill," he finished, snagging the bells back into his hand as he did so.

Silence met his declaration and he almost wondered what the trio could possibly be thinking. Were they thinking it might be easy since he'd allowed himself to get hit by that chalk eraser? Were they underestimating him because of the mask he'd worn? (No pun intended of course.)

Well, he probably wouldn't have to wonder for much longer, as the trio seemed to exchange a glance. Surprising, as it seemed that they were already building a sense of camaraderie, but the Jounin had to wonder if the tentative bond would last against his test. A nervous laugh brought his attention back to the blonde that reminded him so much of the Yondaime and his wife, and the silverette had to suppress the urge to flinch at the blatant reminder of those he'd lost, not even daring to think any farther on the matter, before he remembered his failure to save Obito as well.

And if the taunt he responded to Naruto's words later were a bit harsher than he'd intended, well, at least he knew the blonde would recover from the barbed words that escaped him before he could fully stop them, even as he mentally winced. Too caught up in the blonde that he both yearned to teach yet reviled for all the pain he caused simply by existing that he didn't notice the long look the two darker haired genin exchanged.

As it was, the blonde's almost anxious laugh (that reminded him so much of flowing red hair as well as the just as obnoxious laugh of a certain goggle-wearing teammate, and- no, no,  _no, Kakashi stop thinking about him. Stop thinking about her, and Sensei, and all the stupid things you've done, the precious people you've lost. You idiot, stop thinking about the past and concentrate on the future, here!_ ) traveled easily in the otherwise empty clearing. ( _Stop thinking about them, stop-stop-stop! You have a_ mission  _to do, Kakashi!_ ) And it was only the thought that he still had a 'mission' to finish that would let him compartmentalize enough not to be stuck in the past, as the blonde kept talking.

(Even if it wasn't healthy.)

"-slow you couldn't even dodge a blackboard eraser! We could really end up killing you!" The blonde exclaimed, looping his arms behind his head in false bravado as he fought the urge to laugh nervously again.

(Who cared, so long as he could continue to function?)

"You know, in the real world, it's those who hold  _no talent_  that often bark the loudest," he deadpanned.

(So long as he could do what he was expected to do. It didn't really matter, did it?)

"Well, ignoring the  _dead-last_  over there, you can start when I give the signal~"

Kakashi smiled, the expression stilted, and more than likely forced, but uncaring as he goaded the blonde. Knowing just what would happen but still doing it and ignoring the churning feeling of guilt that settled into his gut like a storm.

Even knowing what would happen, it would still end up chilling him when he came to realize that, by compartmentalizing so much and putting himself on automatic, he might actually have ended up killing the blonde that was the legacy of his most precious people had he not caught himself in time…

Maybe he should rethink having those sessions with the Yamanaka, he mused, forcing his heart to pound normally and  _not_  at the rapid adrenaline fueled pace that it had wanted to upon realizing what he'd nearly done.

(He still knew he wouldn't go to the sessions, though. Not even if the Sandaime suggested it…though that didn't cover any  _commands_  his Hokage might end up giving him, of course, understanding and forgiving as the man might be...)

* * *

' _ **D**_ _obe…! Dobe! ...Dobe!'_  The words echoed in the blonde's head, fueling the annoyance that was rapidly turning into an angry rage, as he grit his teeth. Just who did that guy even think he was? The blonde wondered, trying not to clench his hands knowing that he'd only end up drawing blood as he did. (His healing factor was freakishly fast, and if either of the others noticed his bleeding, or how fast he healed…)

He didn't notice his teammates beside him as he all but zeroed in on the man. The only thing on his mind being the words spoken and the infuriating Jounin before him. Here the blonde had actually been  _worried_  about him, and he just...he just  _threw it back in his face_.

Not even Sasuke was that much of a bastard!

And sure, Sasuke called him a dead-last all the time, but hearing it from this guy…. Just the way he  _said_  it pissed him off, and Naruto really wasn't even sure why. He'd only been trying to play nice, even if he might have gone a little overboard about it. But if he didn't want that courtesy? Well, fine!

 _Fine,_  two could play at that game! Naruto all but growled, mind too clouded with the burst of hatred that suddenly consumed him as he pulled out a Kunai and yelled, roaring his rage at the silver-haired man as he dashed in…

* * *

**T** he sudden change in atmosphere had been clear as day the moment the Jounin before them had spoken. Naruto could be obnoxious, it was true, but there really hadn't been anything that should have incited the sudden change as the man blew off Naruto's (and their) worries.

It hadn't been long, but even Kohaku knew that Naruto wasn't actually a bad person. A bit obnoxious, yes, but…

She shared a look with Sasuke. It was the first time they seemed to agree on something in regards to Naruto, even if the raven-haired genin seemed to ignore or look down on the blonde more often than not. There had been a moment of shared hesitation. Naruto, more and more, seeming to be the voice that asked the questions they didn't really feel like verbalizing, as the blonde wondered if it were really safe to go at the man with such intentions.

(It only took one slip to end a life, after all.)

And surely the man could've worded things a  _little_  differently? Oh, it wasn't that Kohaku doubted the man's skills. He was quite a famous Shinobi, after all, but even with the other two more likely than not oblivious to the man's skill and rank, even Sasuke looked hesitant.

His reason for being so maybe not being quite the same, but for Kohaku, who preferred to  _know_  things, yet still falling prey to the idea that  _maybe Hatake Kakashi isn't quite as strong as he's known to be_... That maybe, the man had lost some of his edge in the time between now and back when he was far better known. Even if she doubted she was at the other's level.

Infamous ninja were heralded as such in the Bingo Books (even if she wasn't supposed to know about said things yet, considering that she had barely even started attending the Academy before she'd first caught a peek at her uncle's copy of said item) for a reason, after all. And even with two bells…

Well, she'd be more than happy to help either of the others, regardless of possibilities.

Maybe her uncle would allow her to become his apprentice if she failed anyway. (A part of her mind felt something niggling at the thought of one of them being sent back, however. Even if she couldn't figure it out right at that moment. Teams of three genin and one Jounin Sensei… Who knew if genin could be matched and mixed into another group. So did she really want to risk being wrong about it…?)

Even if she'd ended up with one of the highest scores out of the girls on the Final Test that had given her the hitaeate she wore around her neck, it wasn't like there was much she could do against a Jounin, after all. Regardless of the fact that she had basically been at a high mid-level, if only because she tended to practice more at  _home_  than at school.

Like she wanted to stay in the ring where everyone's attention was on her for much longer than she had to.

(Needless to say it'd been a surprise to the instructors when she'd done  _far_  better in her physicals than they'd expected on the day of the Exam. Not so surprising that she'd pretty much tied for top marks on the paper quiz, considering she did  _that_  quite diligently at least. So was it really that surprising that she'd ended up top of the girls? Regardless that no one actually seemed to realize she was one if they didn't actually pay attention… She was pretty sure the Inuzuka, and maybe the Aburame and Nara, might have figured it out. Maybe not the Nara if he didn't pay attention to said details, though. But anyone with high enough senses, she supposed.)

Paperwork was easy enough, as most of it was covered either in class or by the book, that it wouldn't really matter if she put her all into it. And Ninjutsu… Well, she had a Jounin for a guardian, and she practiced pretty much every day (some of it was surprisingly useful in housecleaning, if you knew how to apply said skills in training), not to mention that her uncle would sometimes give her tips or mention other tricks and such while he was at home. Sometimes even helping her train and teach her a few things (whatever he thought she could handle) if he was feeling up to it. A rare occurrence to be sure, but an occurrence that always left her with something  _useful_. Useful skills were, obviously, useful to have after all. As was the art of figuring out how to use minimal chakra to execute a jutsu. Conservation of energy was always important.

Still, the fact that she had a far larger chakra pool than the kunoichi her age was a definite advantage. Most of it coming from hard work that had to be put in as well as clan genetics. The Mikazuki had been a mid-sized clan prior to the night of the Kyuubi, after all. Maybe not as big as the big-name clans like the more well-known clans, but big enough to be considered a clan even if they didn't actually keep clan  _grounds_...technically speaking.

(Clan laws had been interesting though, which was why she'd felt free to take her maternal family's last name despite still being considered a Mikazuki… Actually, on official documents her name was listed as Mikazuki-Tsukino Kohaku. Despite the fact that 'Tsukino' should have come first as it came before Mikazuki's 'Mi' in the Japanese Alphabet, it had still been listed first due to it being the Clan Name. As far as she was aware, however, the only ones who got to see the actual documents where she was listed as such were high ranking officials, and all her school and everyday documents simply used 'Tsukino' for her surname. Clan Politics and Workings were interesting enough, but as far as she was concerned, only in theory. As soon as her Uncle had progeny, she was going to place the entire Clan under said progeny's control. As it was, her Uncle was currently acting head. If she wasn't sure that her Uncle wouldn't take the reins completely, she'd have shoved everything onto him seeing as he  _did_  have the right to contest for the position of Clan Head. He was her father's younger brother, after all… but she was digressing.)

Distracted as she had been with her own thoughts (while Sasuke had been eyeing the Jounin, mind running through various options he could take), it had been quite startling to suddenly find a yelling, vivid blur rushing past.

"—! Uzumaki-san—!" She called out, too startled to do much else aside from falling into a defensive stance purely out of habit.

Both Sasuke and herself startled by the sudden movement and swift retaliation as they watched the man turn Naruto's own weapon against him. (Of course he would, he was a  _Shinobi_ , after all, she thought almost hysterically.) Her eyes visually wide as she took in the sudden changes with alarm.

"Now, now. Don't be so hasty, I haven't even given the signal yet," the man intoned, dull slate staring down the trio despite the fact they weren't even standing together, the dangerous aura that had spiked just moments ago not quite dissipating as the silky words slid around their necks, tightening around them like a subtle noose.

Going  _soft?!_  As if! He was clearly still more than strong enough to take on a couple of genin at the very least. And they were supposed to get one of the bells from _him_ somehow?!

She resisted the urge to swallow, almost distantly noting through her senses that Sasuke had actually done so. Pushing the sound of furiously beating hearts against a single steady beat, she wondered just how she could have deluded herself into thinking she might have had a chance.

Maybe if they worked together…

But no, the man had already circumvented that option by only offering  _two_ bells to pass. Like they could've taken him on with just two genin fresh out of the Academy (and what of the third? What there? Was he expecting them to betray each other just to get those bells? ...wait, something in her mind niggled at the idea —only to escape just as easily as her mind became distracted by the icy fear that had spiked at the sudden, nearly suffocating aura).

Kou couldn't help the line of sweat that ran down the side of her face, just as she was sure the others had likely broken into sweat at the oppressive aura that the Jounin was exuding. (Whether it was purposeful or not was another question altogether.)

* * *

**S** asuke watched with wary eyes as dull, slate grey eyes bored into them.

"Seems you're finally prepared to come at me with the intent to kill," the man droned, "Have you finally acknowledged me?" Dark eyes watched as the man held the Dobe effortlessly in place, kunai still pointed at the back of the blonde's head as he droned on. So  _this_  was a Jounin... Impressive.

"Hehe," the man laughed, dull eyes still watching as he chuckled. "It seems I might be beginning to like you guys~"

Sasuke began to slowly and discreetly prepare to move. Any head start would be good for now, as the raven ignored the almost condescending tone that followed the sudden lift in intent. Because that was all that it could've been, that oppressive aura that had pushed down on them all (if only for a second).

"Alright then, let's get going. Ready…?" began the silver-haired man, " _Start!_ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edit: Just a quick notation (and some trivia) on Kohaku's name. 
> 
> _It should technically be spelled Kouhaku but is typically written as Kohaku with a line over the "o" to signify the 'ou' sound. Hence why it's shortened to Kou rather than just Ko in this chapter (and in future chapters when it comes up, especially once Haku shows up)._
> 
> _The actual kanji for Kohaku is: 琥珀_
> 
> _The characters on the left being the kanji for 'ou' or 'king/ruler'. The right halves being the characters for 'tiger' and 'white'. Of course, you could use different characters dependent on the yomi (or reading), but my favorite is the kanji for 'light' as a nickname. It does get used later, though it's more as a nuance and only with her close family as you'll later get to see (but that's spoilers)._
> 
> _By the way, totally unrelated, but if Ko had a shorthand it'd probably be 589, since Ko/Go can be read as 'five' in kana, albeit with a different kanji, 'Ha' being short for 'Hachi' or 'eight', and 'ku' being read as 'nine'._
> 
> First Edit (additional notes & clean-up) — (04/23/18)


	3. Bell Test (Part II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bell test has finally begun and Kakashi gets a (slightly) better handle of his potential new students' skills, while the kids find themselves just a bit over their heads. Still, if there's one trait that they share, it's that they're nothing if not stubborn.
> 
> Kakashi might just have his hands full if this batch actually manages to pass...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you've probably noted by now, this chapter was already prepared in advance. I'm currently going through each chapter before posting it here, but once we've caught up to what I have, chapters are likely to be shorter and/or take longer to post, depending on my muses and whether writer's block decides to persist. Also, I can at least confirm that the next chapter will be the last of the 'Bell Test Arc' for lack of a better name.
> 
> As should be noted, I am not a Japanese mangaka of the Kishimoto family, nor do I have a twin. Thus, I am not the owner/creator of the Naruto franchise.
> 
> As per usual, this chapter is self-beta'd, so please excuse any mistakes. I'd be very grateful if anyone would point out any errors so that I can fix them.
> 
> Also, there will be some cursing in this fic. Which should really be expected considering the series and genre...

* * *

 Kakashi peered about, instantly cataloging the general direction of two of the three little miscreants that might end up falling under his command. Humming in approval when he realized that one had been a decoy making use of a very well done kawarimi, he sighed and lifted a hand to rub at the back of his neck.

"Well, well," looked like they'd hidden surprisingly well, he thought, keeping his voice flat as he resisted the urge to inject a little bit of pride into the statement (damn it, he was already getting attached). "The most important thing for a shinobi is to be able to hide yourself," he sighed, reining in the urge to respond sarcastically as a certain orange-clad blonde did the exact opposite.

"C'mon and fight me!" The blonde yelled, mostly bravado, but far too used to tricking himself when needed to care too much about the fact that his hands were still shaking a bit, something he did by folding his arms (hands hidden tightly at his sides) and taking a far more confident stance.

As if simply pretending would really make it so.

(Uzumaki Naruto was used to pretending, after all. How else could he survive with the hatred that so much of the village seemed to carry for him?)

Kakashi resisted the urge to sigh, "That's… You're a bit off, you know," the slate-eyed man pointed out. He'd known that the blonde was apparently a knucklehead, but…

Well, it wasn't like there was much he could do about it aside from discreetly trying to lead him in the direction he wanted. Kakashi wasn't a top-level Jounin (and ex-AnBu) for nothing, after all.

* * *

Sasuke startled at the sudden appearance of a body that he hadn't been expecting before narrowing his eyes and hissing. " _What are you doing here?!_ " The Uchiha scowled.

Kohaku ignored it, however, with the ease of someone who'd had much practice ignoring those around her. Instead, she decided to be blunt (or, well, more blunt than usual) as she stated exactly what she wanted.

"There are two bells," she pointed out, voice low but not quite... _whispering_ , per say. "Our opponent is Jounin-level. There's no way a single genin would be able to get past him unless he wanted us to. Especially not if he's really a retired AnBu Captain as rumors say."

Sasuke choked. " _AnBu Captain?!_ " After a moment of staring into dull amber colored eyes and then at the lazy looking Jounin with sheer disbelief, he forced himself to calm down. "How the hell would you even know that!" He hissed, keeping a wary half-eye on the now far more threatening figure.

Unimpressed slit-pupiled eyes bore into him. Before she could say anything, though, a loud exclamation cut through the hushed conversation they'd been holding.

" _The only thing that's a bit off is your hair cut!_ " yelled Naruto, the bright orange eyesore that was his jumpsuit flashing past as he moved to attack.

Sasuke cursed the idiocy of their potential blonde teammate, tensing as the silver-haired Jounin reached into a pouch at his side. As the two watched, Naruto seemed to actually have some sense as he immediately stopped, ready to back away as the man slowly pulled something out of said pouch.

"Shinobi Fighting Lesson #1, Taijutsu," he began, "I'll teach you all about it," he said airily.

* * *

Taijutsu was a Shinobi hand-to-hand combat style, Naruto thought as he watched the man with wary blue eyes. But, considering that he was reaching into a pouch for something… Was he going to use a weapon? He wondered, only to pause as the man pulled out a certain  _book_  that he'd seen before, a bright  _orange_  book (which was really the reason he'd shown any interest in said text to begin with) in one fluid move, standing in what looked like something that was  _supposed_  to come off as cool, only to…

Well, it really wasn't cool at all, especially considering the  _book he had in his hand._

_Oh my god, what the fuck, was this guy some sort of pervert or something?!_ Naruto though, somewhat horrified by the revelation. Holy shit!

"What's wrong? Hurry up and attack me," the tone of voice used almost seemed smug to the blonde as he tried to think things through.

No, no. It couldn't...couldn't possibly be...? Like, seriously? Sure that his eyes were playing tricks on him (or something), he laughed nervously before deciding to question the man. "H-Hey, what's with the book!?" He all but demanded, watching as the man pulled it up in front of his face as if to read.

"Hm? Well, you see, I wanted to know what happens next," he said leisurely, "Don't worry though, it's not like it'd make a difference against you guys," Kakashi told him, not even looking at the blonde as a single eye roved the pages.  _Icha Icha Paradise_  was a wonderful book, and, as with any of the series by Jiraiya-sama, was something he would never tire of.

Silence met the amused man's proclamation, one second, then two passing until his words seemed to finally register, mouth working soundlessly for a moment as the blonde worked himself up into a tizzy. _"I am totally gonna kick your ass!"_ He yelled, once again moving as he aimed a furious kick at the man's face —only to be blocked with ease, a single hand coming up to meet him, followed up by a duck as he tried to get him again. With each miss, he became more and more annoyed, moves sloppy if still rage-filled, and easily evaded.

When his next attack met thin air, however, the blonde paused. "Wh-huh?" He blinked, what the—

The man had disappeared? No way!

"A shinobi's not supposed to get caught from behind, you know...Idiot," the voice came from behind him, and as the blue-eyed teen slowly turned to look, a feeling of dread filled him.

This...this wasn't going to end well at all, was it? He thought numbly, unable to help the sweat that trickled down the side of his face.

"Eh...heh...heh…"

Nope, not good at all, he thought, catching a glimpse of a hand seal. This really wasn't looking good at all—

* * *

As Naruto was sent flying into the water, Sasuke and Kohaku had both come to an agreement and broken up, hoping to lower the chances of either of them being caught...or humiliated, as the man seemed to intent on doing. As it was, Kohaku was having a difficult time keeping her aura and chakra reined in. After all, any good ninja would be able to at least sense that there was chakra in the vicinity if not pinpoint it, and she had no doubt that Hatake-san (he wasn't sensei yet, after all) would be able to track them easily enough even without that advantage.

Still, better safe than sorry, and Kohaku had always been a careful one, making her way around towards the water while Sasuke headed in the other direction. Hopefully they could pincer the man between them, while getting enough time for Kohaku to convince Naruto to help if what she was seeing right now was any indication of his chakra reserves (she  _had_  been taught the hand seals for the kage bunshin and knew a little about it, but her chakra reserves still weren't high enough for her to make even one safely just yet, even if her control was better than the other genin's at the moment…

(Well, okay, more  _accurately_ , her uncle had let her 'accidentally see' the hand seals, while hinting that he'd better not find her attempting to use the skill unless he deemed it safe. He wasn't supposed to be teaching forbidden jutsu after all, but Kohaku had been curious, and seeing as it was a _Leaf_ Kinjutsu, it had been pretty likely she'd catch sight of  _someone_  using them at some point, anyway. So better to show her properly rather than attempt to copy a half-assed or possibly even incomplete seal-set and cause potentially deadly or irreparable harm).

Of course, she hadn't told Sasuke about this part of the plan, since she wasn't sure how he'd take it, having to 'team up' with the class clown. He might have rejected it just as easily as gone with it, but she would honestly rather just get this over with at the moment.

Keeping a sharp eye on the one she'd decided was (probably) the real Naruto, she brought her hands up into the seals for a Kawarimi. Hopefully all that practice would let her get in and out fast enough that Kakashi wouldn't take note of it until too late. Of course, again, considering that the man was a Jounin, and highly ranked in the few bounty books she'd had the privilege of looking at (mostly out of curiosity, seeing as Kohaku preferred not to have to socialize more than she was required to...which basically meant that she mostly preferred to stay home or train a majority of the time, honestly speaking), that chance was more than likely slim to none.

Still, she had to at least try. She  _had_  been the one to think up the idea in the first place, after all… And no doubt the last Uchiha would be annoyed if she didn't at least try to do what she'd said she would.

Ah, well. Kou didn't particularly care about what most people tended to think, after all, otherwise she would have fallen into peer pressure a long time ago. Still… something about this whole test continued to niggle in the back of her mind, but she still couldn't remember exactly what it had been.

As it was, she was working on the assumption that unless she could get some coordination in, none of them would pass —and at the very least, she'd like for  _one_  of them to pass even if it's not her…

Okay, but, this was  _really_  starting to bug her. Just  _what was it that she was forgetting...!?_

"..." Taking a slow and careful breath, she focused herself back on the only plan she'd been able to come up with in the short amount of time since the actual test had been revealed. It wasn't great, and it probably wasn't good, but it wasn't terrible either. Taking a deep breath, she paused.

Hold on. Taking another deep whiff, her eyes widened. The Naruto's… They smelled the same, but—

_But one of their scents smell stronger than the others_. If she hadn't taken that breath at the right moment, she probably would never have noticed. But the bunshin, despite being  _Naruto_ , were only  _chakra constructs_  made to look, sound, and feel like him. With enough pressure, they would dissipate, but they were meant to throw the opponent off, because they were  _solid_ , and —as with any good bunshin— were meant to throw them off your trail in a sort of misdirection.

And yeah, Chakra didn't have a scent (unless it was some sort of weird sensor ability one had, because let's face it. Even in Konoha there there quite a few ridiculous bloodlines, let alone in the entirety of the Elemental Nations), but with a Kage Bunshin the solidified copy was just that —an exact copy of the maker, regardless of shape or form. And after a while, one could learn to recognize another by their chakra as well.

Of course, Naruto was a pitfall of chakra, and she probably wouldn't want to poke _that_  reservoir with a ten-meter pole (something about it was a little off, after all, but then, everyone's chakra was a little different? Ugh, this was getting difficult to explain). Anyway, the end of the matter was that the copies were just that,  _copies_ , and as they —or, well,  _someone_  had once said, 'copies were but a mere fraction of the real thing'.

That probably didn't make sense, but the point of the matter was that the copies were just different enough from the main body that she could tell the difference if she paid close attention to her senses. Kohaku wasn't by any means a skilled tracker or sensor, but that didn't mean she didn't have  _some_ knowledge on the matter. Still, in the end what mattered were the practical results, not the theory.

Especially on a battlefield.

Watching and waiting as the dust settled, Kohaku tried to find a moment where she could quickly use the kawarimi to move in and replace the mentally marked Naruto with a copy. Unfortunately, the blonde ended up dispelling himself in the end when she waited too long.

Mentally cursing in annoyance at the missed chance, Kohaku restrained herself from sighing (and possibly giving her position away, if he didn't know where she was already) and shook her head. No, it wasn't Naruto's fault, especially when he didn't in the  _know_ , after all. But damned if she didn't almost give herself away trying to resist the urge to warn Naruto of the fact that the lone bell on the ground had been an obvious trap.

Grimacing at the change in plans, she layered a weak genjutsu to create what looked to be a flock of birds to fly high above the clearing and past it out of sight. Hopefully Sasuke would get the change in plans, but if not, well, hopefully the raven-haired boy would be able to understand that the plans had to be altered. They had managed to come up with two plans, after all. The first half being the same, but the second half…

Well, it really couldn't be helped, taking a deep breath, she wove a genjutsu of herself and sent it slinking across the clearing. It was a little obvious, but hopefully Kakashi would just take it as an inexperienced Genin trying to do...well,  _something_  by sneaking up on him as he chattered away at the blonde.

No doubt the raven haired avenger would have taken the opening if not for the bunshin that had made its way slowly across the clearing while keeping a 'careful eye' on the Jounin, one hand flashing a few signs to the Uchiha, while the other put a finger to her lips when the blonde took notice of her.

Somehow, though she wasn't really sure exactlyhow considering the blonde seemed to wear his literal heart on his sleeve, he managed to pretend not to see her, seeming to focus entirely on yelling at the Jounin. Though she wasn't sure if the Uchiha had noticed her hand signs, as she slowly moved her actual body so that she could get close enough to lunge at the right moment while the man was distracted by her bunshin, she managed to catch the glint of an eye in the foliage closer to Naruto. As her bunshin reached behind herself, pretending to grab a kunai while it gave a countdown, she readied herself so that she would be ready when it hit one.

If they didn't time this right, none of them would be able to get a bell —and maybe if she could get Naruto to agree to the idea she'd just thought of (Bunshin could be turned into objects...right?), maybe they could all pass…

Although, she still wasn't honestly sure whether she actually wanted to be on the same team as such an eccentric shinobi.

Oh, well, if they  _did_  pass, at least they would be taught by one of the best (though she kind of figured the only reason the Jounin had even been made the teacher for  _this_  squad would be because of the Uchiha, if she was putting all the clues together right. Especially considering that the Hatake had a Sharingan, and that Uchiha would no doubt one day awaken his own Sharingan...or, well, so her theory went. It was rather sound, though, so it was likely at least  _one_  of the reasons for part of the team's configuration...aside from the whole Dead Last and Top plus Kunoichi… Now that she thought about it, why  _hadn't_  she rigged her grades to avoid being placed with two…? Well, whatever, it wasn't like it really mattered now. No use clinging to possibilities in hindsight).

That didn't mean he would be very good at teaching, but she really,  _really_  hoped that wouldn't be the case. Having an eccentric teacher who also couldn't cater to their student's learning styles? That… well, she just really hoped the Hokage knew what he was doing with all this.

As the bunshin hit its last finger in its silent countdown, she layered a genjutsu to make it sound as if it had yelled and was now lunging in for an attack while the silver-haired Jounin dodged, still holding that orange novel in his hand.

A moment later, and both Uchiha and herself had darted out, layered genjutsu hiding their actual positions while they tried to use a combo for the first time in the hopes of snatching the bells. It wouldn't work as well as they'd hoped, but at least they wouldn't be without hope at all…

* * *

Sasuke had to admit, if only to himself, that the idea had had merit —though it would be difficult to pull off— as he slunk his way towards what he deemed the best spot to strike. Creating a layered genjutsu between them to make things seem more real and to confuse the man? Even if they failed and the genjutsu wasn't perfectly in sync, the man would (hopefully) believe that there was only actually one, or he'd be confused enough that it would buy them enough time to get themselves hidden again.

Of course, the raven haired avenger had no plans on failing the first time. But if the idiotic seeming man really was an ex-AnBu captain (just like  _that_  man) and an actual genius, then no doubt the face he was showing them now was just a mask to throw them off and make them think that he was less competent than he really was.

As it was, he'd had to restrain the urge to attack at the first opening he'd spotted, aware that it was a potential trap, as he waited for the signal.

A flock of birds flew past the clearing in a formation of five and three as he thought, with two more zooming away at the head of the formation. Discreetly using a Kai, he watched as the birds disappeared from his sight about two thirds of the way across the clearing. Genjutsu then, and a signal.

They'd be using Plan B instead of Plan A.

Well, considering that the blonde had positioned himself as a perfect distraction for the moment, and in no way on purpose (that idiot), the raven-haired boy could see the merit in the alteration. It wasn't much of a change, but…

Catching sight of a copy of the boy he'd reluctantly decided to team up with for the moment, Sasuke watched as it made a series of hand-signs that he recognized. Soon, soon they'd have their first chance. The other was a bit cautious, but he supposed that was all well and good considering that their opponent seemed to be stronger than he appeared (no matter how idiotic and aggravating the man seemed). As it reached halfway across the clearing and caught the eye of the blonde that had been scowling at the lecture the Jounin had been giving him, the raven haired preteen waited until it began reaching behind itself again to start preparing chakra needed for their next move.

As soon as the bunshin lunged, yelling, Sasuke created another bunshin and activated the genjutsu he'd been preparing, angling the illusion so that it would show up without the usual cloud of smoke that typically seemed to appear, and having it attack from a different angle, as if taking advantage of the sudden 'opening' that the other had given him.

Even as that happened, however, he felt the other genjutsu that Tsukino had created layering itself around his own, making their ploy seem even more realistic, while they both lunged at the man, weapons in hand, and throwing a full set each while keeping a few for defensive purposes.

As he lunged for the bell while the man started jumping back, he caught his temporary ally doing the same from his position, all while the idiot blonde started yelling at them to 'watch out', clearly caught up in the genjutsu.

Somehow, just as his hand brushed past the bells, the man seemed to sense him, catching his arm and tossing him back into the woods. He tsked, quickly readying another genjutsu to re-layer onto the field once the man released the previous one, somehow managing to make it seem as if he'd landed somewhere a few meters away from where he actually was rather where he'd really landed, coughing at the force he'd been flung with.  _Ow_ , overkill much? he scowled, grimacing while holding back a groan as he pulled himself out of the miniature crater he was now center of.

As he'd layered the genjutsu over again though, he caught sight of Tsukino being caught and tossed in another direction, making the hand seals for another genjutsu to thread into his. Hopefully the second genjutsu wouldn't be discovered nearly as easily, but for now, Sasuke was going to work on the assumption that he would definitely have it figured out.

Brushing away some of the dirt, he kept a wary eye on the silver-haired Jounin, only to bite back a curse as the man disappeared from view.

_Another Kami-damned Kawarimi no Jutsu_...

* * *

Kakashi had to say that he was curious, if not totally impressed. The idea to use a genjutsu to try to throw him off... The teamwork had been just a  _little_ impressive, and he had a feeling they might have actually managed to snatch one of the bells… If not for the fact that the other had been reaching for his  _pouch_  for some reason.

Granted, he was sure he could guess the reason, as he'd caught the hand trying to snatch the pouch that had been attached to his belt (he wouldn't have expected it, after all, since normally the kids would be aiming for the actual bells themselves, rather than something else). Whether it was a distraction or not, the man wasn't quite sure, but he was glad he'd realized that the genjutsu had been cast on him even if it had taken til the feel of intent (maybe not killing intent, but still _intent_ nonetheless) and the feeling of something touching his possessions that had alerted him to the fact.

Of course, he'd dispelled it afterwards, just in case, but he would never have expected the second genjutsu. In fact, he hadn't realized that another had been layered on after until he'd realized something was off, though that wouldn't be until later.

As it was, the idea of layering their genjutsu had been a risky move, since being off by even a bit would have resulted in something...well, not quite pleasant, but it  _would_ have granted them at least an extra second of time they'd likely need to grab the bells themselves if he hadn't immediately dispelled it.

And if he hadn't released the genjutsu, he probably wouldn't have heard the sound of the bells jingling as they fell had Kohaku succeeded. As it was, he was a bit more alert now, and, keeping tabs on the other two, he decided to go after the only kunoichi on the team first. Maybe he could trick some answers out of her, or at the very least see if she was planning anything.

After all, out of all three, Naruto was doggedly persistent (if kind of dumb) and easily goaded into doing as he wished. Sasuke...had surprised him a bit, but if they were really working together, then he supposed that could have explained things? He wasn't sure exactly how the girl had convinced the stubborn avenger, but he'd find out soon enough, he was sure.

Taking a moment to hide himself away from all senses before appearing in the branches of a tree near the now wincing kunoichi as she pulled her arm out a tree with a hiss ( _oops_ , looks like he might have tossed her a little too hard, though it seemed she was fine if the way she was shaking her arm was any indication —likely just unpleased by the fact that she'd been tossed, quite literally,  _into_  a tree), expression pinched as she tried to reorient herself.

Ah, probably did end up tossing her a little too hard, he mused. Hopefully there was no concussion though, Sandaime would be a _little_ annoyed with him if he ended up damaging one of the few potentially competent kunoichi of this batch.

Still, feeling kind (or maybe just pity with a side of guilt), he waited for the girl to completely pick herself up and brush the wood chips off her clothes. The girl had apparently gotten a few  _in_  her jacket since she had to shake parts of her Aburame-like coat to get them to all fall out. He didn't smell blood though, so he assumed that she'd likely condensed a bit of chakra to avoid breaking anything at the last minute.

Amused as the girl huffed and seemed to even huff in disgruntlement (that was _definitely_ a pout, how cute~) as she shook her sleeves out too, he snuck behind her and waited for  _just_  the right moment to—

" _Boo!_ " whisper right into her ear.

Watching as she stiffened for a good half-second before immediately breaking away and turning to face him as she did in a defensive stance, he nodded. Good, at least she knew what to do, though he'd have to break her of that habit of freezing up when surprised—

_If_  he ended up taking them on, he reminded himself. Like hell he'd do whatever a  _civilian_  council tried to make him do if he didn't want to (not when it was their fault that Naruto was treated the way he was). The Hokage might be able to order him about, but he _knew_ the old man had a bit of a soft spot for him, and the Jounin was taking full advantage of the fact whenever he could.

Ah, but he was digressing (he'd never admit it, but he really was starting to get fond of these rascals. As much as it hurt how it reminded him of his old team, it was also different enough that he could avoid thinking about it too much —but then, Kakashi had always been a bit of a hypocrite, after all. Saying one thing but meaning another, or saying one thing while not meaning it at all, or doing just the opposite, simply because he could).

Right now, smiling at the girl from behind his mask, he couldn't help the bubble of amusement that nearly made him chortle —especially at the wary expression on her face. It looked like she was trying not to look in any other directions, as she kept her eyes on the 'enemy'.

Taking a step closer as she moved further backwards, he almost giggled, the look of wariness on her face was just so…  _Ha_ , well, it was true that he could be a scary son of a bitch when he wanted to be, but even if that were the case, he wouldn't go so far as to permanently harm them.

Or, well, he wasn't  _supposed_  to, per say, and he didn't...not really… Unless they annoyed him —but so far he was in a pretty good mood, even if he had ended up paying more attention to the kids despite the book in his hands...which wasn't exactly what he'd been planning to do.

Still, even the test was a lesson. And Kakashi had decided to at least impart a few important things to remember to these kids, whether he accepted them or not.

Either way, having decided he'd made her squirm for long enough, Kakashi spoke.

"I'm impressed~" He told her, only half faking the tone as she shifted in discomfort, still keeping a wary eye on him. (Good,  _never_  take your eyes off the enemy, he thought, almost grim as he remembered the deaths of comrades that could be attributed simply due to even a moment's distraction from their foe.) "That little display of teamwork earlier was quite interesting. Was it you who thought it up? Or perhaps Sasuke?" He mused, pretending not to already know, as he feigned ignorance of the fact. If it made them underestimate him, all the better. If not, well, it only took one slip…

"..." Kohaku didn't answer though, clearly still wary. Grip tight on the kunai in her hand as she tried to sharpen her senses, resisting the urge to twitch as her ears caught sound of one of her teammates getting closer.

Somehow, she was doubtful that it was Naruto if all the cursing she could hear from across the clearing further out was any indication. Still, she didn't react to the sound of leaves rustling. Who knew if it was a trap? She'd layered the genjutsu on top of Sasuke's at the last minute, but that didn't mean the man hadn't already managed to dispel it while they were all out of sight.

As the man continued to stand there and smile —apparently bored enough with her silence to start reading again. She tried to think of a way to avoid getting caught by the silvered scarecrow (though there were rumors that he'd had that color since birth.. Wait, no, not important right now). Assuming that Sasuke had arrived, he would be able to use the genjutsu to make it seem that she was still there if she tried to move. But without Hatake-san —he wasn't their Sensei  _yet_ , after all— making any moves, she couldn't actually tell if he was still under the genjutsu. As it was, she had no choice but to try to test whether or not he was still under it with some probing.

"...And if it was?" She asked, voice low and hoping to see whether he reacted or not if she shuffled even a little bit off to the side.

He didn't move though, either (rightfully) confident that he could take her on even with the single side-step she took, or simply not noticing that she'd moved under the cover of the genjutsu. The Jounin hummed as he flipped another page.

"Finally speaking up, huh? Well, it would still be as I expected of course. Still, it's cute how you kids think you can actually take me on with just a Genjutsu on a few of the basic Ninjutsu you've learned," he mused, eye still scanning the page while actually paying attention to the figure standing before him.

Still, as the subtle genjutsu he'd woven a little earlier slowly began to shift into what he'd wanted it to do, he pretended to easily dodge the hail of kunai and shuriken that had been thrown at him as he bent close to ninety degrees backwards, physically jumping back only when another hail of weapons followed.

"Uchiha!" the girl exclaimed, startled at the sudden appearance of the raven-haired male. "What-"

"Change of plans! He hid the bells somewhere!" the visage of the Uchiha called out, standing at an angle to the other two as he readied another barrage. "You find them while I distract him!" He called to her without looking, readying to lunge at the Jounin.

Head snapping towards the Jounin again —the girl cursed,  _when_  had she taken her eyes off him?! she saw that the raven haired avenger was right as the bells disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Oh~ Found out, did you?" the man mused, smiling behind his mask again as he slowly reached back with his free hand for a kunai. "But do you really think just one of you will be enough to taken me on~?" he chuckled, eye crinkling into what was clearly a mocking smile.

Cursing mentally as she quickly calculated the chances of this being a trap, she let her eyes dart between the two figures to see whether the situation was real or not. Sasuke looked a bit battered, but otherwise alright. That was…good, but would he be able to hold on? She wondered, still backing away little by little, in case she did end up needing to get out of the way.

But hold on, why would Sasuke help her? It wasn't like…

"KAI!" She exclaimed, releasing the genjutsu without knowing, as the copy of Sasuke continued to stand there and snarl.

"What the hell are you doing?! Hurry up and go!" He yelled, "I can only hold him off for a little while, so get Naruto to make clones or something to hold him off!" He exclaimed, catching the girl's attention, even despite the eye she continued to keep on the amused looking Jounin as he sidestepped another 'barrage' of weapons.

"Tsk, tsk, wasting your weapons, Sasuke, really?" He smiled, eyes glinting as the kunoichi of the team hesitated for another moment…

And took off.

A pleased smile stretched across the Jounin's face. "Lesson #2 of Shinobi Fighting, Genjutsu…" He chuckled softly. She'd fallen for the trap he'd set while she'd been under his genjutsu, creating a kage bunshin of himself to make a battered copy of a Sasuke that had ended up encountering him first. "—and Misdirection."

No doubt believable considering the —admittedly short— amount of time he'd waited before actually confronting her.

Of course, it'd been a bit of a gamble, he mused, the Sasuke clone relaxed from an attacking position to simply stand and wait as he reached into his back pocket to pull the bells out again.

As it was, his move to intercept Sasuke would happen before he could actually come in contact with the girl again.

"Though... I suppose it _is_ true that people tend to mistake one for the other at times."

* * *

Meanwhile, during the time that Kakashi was dealing with Kohaku, Naruto had been struggling to free himself from the  _exact_  same trap as he'd just been caught in. Grumbling and muttering to himself as he tried to reach up to cut the rope (again) only to miss for some reason, he cursed. Never realizing that he'd been hit with a genjutsu as well, considering his terrible chakra control —and, well, awareness in general.

Eventually, though, he ended up just giving up with a huff, deciding to take a break as he tried to think of how to get himself down without causing himself injury...yet again. But  _m_ _an_ , that had been so embarrassing earlier! The blonde thought, hoping that neither the bastard _or_ Kohaku had noticed, as his body was turned with the momentum of the rope. As it was, it took him a moment to realize something.

Catching sight of a flag on a stone behind the stumps, he squinted, realizing that the bento Kakashi had brought were on the flagstone. Slowly grinning as an idea came to mind, he decided to steal the two bento for himself and Kohaku (since the other genin had been so nice as to supply him with food — _twice_ now!), and leave Sasuke-teme without any food!

It'd serve him right if the energy he'd gotten from the food bars earlier ran out while he was fighting Kakashi! But before he could implement Plan 'Get Lunch For Just Me And Kohaku', said person came dashing towards him.

_"Uzumaki!"_ Calling in a voice a bit higher than expected, the blonde turned his head back towards the amber-eyed brunette, trying to keep said person in sight despite the rope that continued to make his body turn this way and that, even if it was slowing.

"Kohaku!" He grinned, "And it's just Naruto, 'tte bayo!" loosening his arms from where they were crossed across his chest, the blue-eyed blonde blinked, "But hey, what are you doing here? I thought you were trying to get the bells from Kakashi?" He asked, curious, and not at all seeming to mind that she'd been working with that bastard,  _Sasuke_ , earlier.

"It seems that Hatake-san's hidden the bells. I'm planning to look for them, will you help?" asked the amber-eyed genin, stopping just a ways beneath the blonde, so that the brunette could look at him without having crane her neck too much.

"What?! You want _me_ to help?!" He asked, blinking for a moment, only to grin when the other nodded. "Of course, datte bayo! You've been really nice to me, so I'll definitely help you, datte bayo!" Grinning at the slight head tilt and puzzled expression he got in return (Ha! Yes! He got him to make a different face!), Naruto gave the other an upside-down V symbol. "If it's you 'n' me, we can definitely do it!" Of course, at the prospect of a chance of actually beating Sasuke, all thoughts of stealing the food vanished from his mind, excitement replacing the hunger that he'd felt since earlier.

Kohaku nodded, taking a few more steps back, "Can you get down from there yourself?" She asked, seeming to gauge the distance between Naruto and the ground as well as her and the rope.

Giving the girl a sheepish laugh, Naruto...reluctantly told her about his problem. "Err, well...actually, y'see… I-I don't know why, but I, uh, keep missing the stupid rope," he admitted, he really wasn't that terrible at throwing kunai, but he sucked with shuriken —though he'd of course been training with them. Seeing the strange look on the other's face, though (he wasn't sure if that was just the other's brows furrowing slightly or not, it was weird trying to tell when he was upside down. From here his brain kept thinking Kohaku was smiling even though he knew it was a frown).

"...Have you tried surging some chakra to see if it's genjutsu?" The almost bland tone almost caused the blonde to flush but he just grinned sheepishly and made the seal for releasing genjutsu as he admitted he hadn't.

"I- hehe…Er— No? Uh…  _Kai!"_ He exclaimed, blinking at the moment of double vision that occurred during its dissipation before he shook his head. "Whoa! I, uh, I guess that was a genjutsu after all…?" He blinked, pulling out the kunai again, and reaching up to cut the rope, this time succeeding —only to stumble as he landed.

Thankfully not falling flat on his face or anything, but it was certainly a close thing.

"Phew! So, uh, what now?" He asked, grinning at the once again blank faced brunette.

"...Could you make a couple of kage bunshin and henge them?" She asked, even as she kept an eye on their surroundings… 'just in case', as she quietly outlined an idea to the blonde.

"Oh hey, yeah! I can do that, 'tte bayo!" He grinned, creating a bunch of clones, most of them looking like Naruto and Kohaku, while a few looked like Sasuke, one of the Sasuke's moving up next to Naruto and Kohaku, while the others split into their own groups of 'with' and 'without' Sasuke. "Okay, all done! But man, that was pretty smart, Kohaku!" He grinned, arms folded behind his head, as the groups waited for their next orders.

"...Are you sure they can act like who they're supposed to be?" She asked, somewhat dubious when she caught a Sasuke making weird faces, and a couple copies of her making different expressions from her usual serious expression. Probably just because he could.

"Uh, yeah! ...I think so, anyway," he grinned sheepishly, turning to his clones, "Okay, guys! You know what to do!" He exclaimed, as the clones nodded, the Sasuke's and Kohaku's trying to look serious while the Naruto's cheered…

She caught a few of the Kohaku and Sasuke's cheering too, though, before they got elbowed —or slapped— by one of their brethren. Frowning, but sighing as she made a few illusory bunshin to augment the chaos, she nodded to Naruto, and waited for him to let the clones loose.

"Alright then, get to it, you guys! And remember to act like who you're supposed to be, dattebayo!"

As the groups scattered in noisy movements, she, Naruto, and their Sasuke copy headed in another direction, unaware of what was actually happening to the actual Uchiha on their team as they followed a false lead…

* * *

Kakashi was chuckling as Sasuke glowered, mentally cursing as he tried to keep up with Jounin. He'd somehow managed to catch the Ninjutsu the man had set as a trap in time to avoid it, but the man was nothing if not skilled. Something Sasuke had had to reluctantly admit he was only just realizing before too late. Kohaku  _had_ told him a bit in the short time they'd had, but it wasn't like he'd fully believed it. Until now, anyways. If he hadn't already been wary it was likely that he'd have been caught in the Earth jutsu the man had prepared for him early on.

Still, it gnawed at him that the man was clearly playing with him despite the fact that he'd long since put the book away, unaware that the kage bunshin he'd been fighting since the failed attempt to use genjutsu on the man the first time had been replaced by the man himself. Nor had he even realized he'd been fighting a bunshin at all.

As it was, he'd already used one of his trump cards, showing one of the cards kept close in his hand due to the Katon jutsu he'd released earlier, unaware of the look of shock that had passed on the man's face.

As it was, Sasuke was struggling just to keep up, as he wondered just what was going on.

Had Kohaku gotten caught? No, he should be working with the estimate that the other genin _had_ already gotten caught —or had at least been pulled into a trap as he almost had earlier— regardless of if he had until proven otherwise. Scowling as the man tossed another couple of low ranking jutsu at him as if it were nothing, the Uchiha had to bite back a curse, executing a Kawarimi just in time to avoid getting caught in some kind of earth dome jutsu.

"I have to say," the man started, "I'm impressed."

Keeping his attention on the Jounin, and assuming the genjutsu had been broken, Sasuke moved to cast another while hiding the fact that he'd left a bunshin to act as if he'd only just jumped out of the way going in the other direction.

"I honestly didn't expect you all to do even a fraction as well as you have," the man continued, building to a topic that he was sure would be able to break the Uchiha's concentration long enough to get caught by one of his traps.

"Hn," seemingly ignoring the man's words, the bunshin version of Sasuke went through another set of hand seals for the Goukakyuu no Jutsu, the real Sasuke forming a different set at the same time.

It seemed it was going to be now or never after all.

Carefully performing the hand seals for a jutsu he didn't know nearly as well as the Great Fireball Jutsu, Sasuke shifted through the six seals needed to perform the jutsu he was planning.

_Rat — Tiger — Dog — Ox — Rabbit — Tiger —!!_

" _Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!_ " He hissed as quietly as he could, wincing slightly as they didn't quite all go exactly in the direction he wanted. Though it was close enough that he hoped it would be hidden by the genjutsu he'd cast earlier, pulling out another barrage of kunai and shuriken to hide in or behind some of the flames. He wasn't at the level that he could control the shuriken or aim properly with the attack, but he could at least direct it in a general direction and augment it with above mentioned weapons.

As Kakashi (rather belatedly) realized his mistake and cast a sloppy "Kai!" in response, though, Sasuke could almost,  _almost_  believe that it'd been worth using the technically incomplete —or rather, insufficiently trained— jutsu. Watching in satisfaction as it singed a part of the Jounin's sleeve.

And for a moment, just for that moment, he'd felt a feeling of triumph as the man grabbed and patted at his burned sleeve—

Only to disappear into smoke.

"Too bad~ You almost, actually, got me!" came a voice beside his ear. (What the fuck—?!)

Before he could even turn in his shock, though, he found himself feeling the sensation of a sudden drop —before finding himself buried up to his neck in dirt.

Standing before him, with a stupid smile that was visible even behind his face mask, was the Jounin that he was supposed to be defending himself against.

"Shinobi Fighting Lesson #3—" The man smiled, "Well, I supposed you're already much farther than the others in this, at least," he mused, unaware of the fact that Kohaku still had a few tricks up her ridiculously big sleeves (though most of them were more useless than not in this setting, either way).


	4. Bell Test (Part III)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things may be off to a rough start —but hey, it could always be worse. 
> 
> Will the hopefuls of Team 7 be able to overcome this trial? Or will they fail against the might and skill of one hailed as both genius and a highly ranked, Jounin once-member of the AnBu... And an Ex-Captain, at that?
> 
> They'd best find out soon, though. Time is running out, and with the test nearly over...

* * *

  **A** s Kakashi walked off to find the others, he found himself facing Naruto and...what _seemed_ to be a bunshin of Kohaku...or maybe she was straining her face while trying to _pretend_ to be one of Naruto's bunshin, the man mused.

It was definitely plausible considering that Naruto was a rather terrible actor as far as he was aware. Of course, looking too far underneath the underneath tended to turn one in circles —or made one start second guessing themselves— and Kakashi was definitely not at the point of being loco crazy yet (though some might beg to differ on that point).

_"You!"_  the blonde idiot yelled as soon as they caught sight of him, the (probably?) copy of Kohaku looking like she was struggling not to do the same thing. "What the hell are you doing here!? And— Whoa, Sasuke?!" Wide blue eyes stared past him at the half-buried raven somewhere behind him.

Kakashi chuckled despite his unwillingness to admit how much the blonde amused him (it still hurt when he thought about how similar he was to Obito. Like a culmination of his failings —to Sensei for not taking care of his child, to Obito for failing to save him that terrible day, and… and to  _Rin_ , the woman that Obito had loved). The smile quickly disappeared to be replaced by the usual fake he typically wore.

"Ah, I see you've found us," he drawled, book pinned under his arm as he stuck his hands into his pockets, half to hide the tenseness of his fists, and half to fake the casual disregard he wore like a mantle on a daily basis, whenever in public or with company. "He put up far more of a fight than you as you can see~~" He told him, eyes curving into crescents, as he even added a thoughtful hum, causing both Naruto and the clone to bristle.

A-ha! Definitely a clone then.

"Why you—!!" Even if their motive were to be saving Sasuke, time was running low. And whether they panicked or not... Well, Kakashi was pretty confident that he'd come out the victor of  _this_  round at least.

And of course, making sure to interrupt the blonde before he could say anymore as he pretended to study the sky and hum once more, he spoke up again. "Looks like it'll be noon, soon enough. Guess you'd better try and snatch these bells quick, if you want any hope at a chance of passing!" He smiled, senses sharp still despite the fact that he'd willingly blinded himself to the scene before him.

Still, Naruto —at this point, at least— was nothing if not predictable in certain ways.

Even if he was still quite unpredictable in others.

" _What?!_  Agh! I'll— I'll definitely get the bell before time goes up!" The blonde yelled alongside his clone, apparently forgetting that his clone was supposed to be someone else at the moment.

Ah, well, that just made it even easier for him to come up with a counter plan.

"Yup~ As of now, however, it looks like Sasuke is— ah, oops~  _was_  ahead of the game, at least!" He goaded, swinging the very bells they needed from his fingers and purposely making them chime. "From the look of things, I'd say you have —hmmm," he mused, purposely drawing the sound out to taunt the blonde. "—Ah, a minute or two left~?" Possibly just a bit more considering he hadn't exactly brought the clock with him.

Clearly panicking now, both Naruto and the bunshin rushed at him, and—

Disappeared into puffs of smoke.

_What_.

* * *

**O** n the other side of the forest, closer to the clearing, Naruto, Kohaku, and the Sasuke-copy they'd brought, found themselves right back where they'd started.

"I, uh, don't suppose he might have used a jutsu to hide it —'tte ba saa?" Naruto asked, scratching the back of his head in confusion. The two had followed the same trail of scent, one which had seemed to split up a few times (kage bunshin?) taking one route to a dead end, before going back to follow the other.

"...Maybe he moved them?" Kohaku mused, frowning as she thought, somewhat annoyed at the incessant niggling in the back of her mind. She was missing something. Something very im...por...tant...

Oh.

_Oh_.

Cursing herself for not realizing it sooner, she rubbed her face with a sigh.

"He didn't hide them," she realized, finally putting together at least one thing, even if there was still _something_ niggling at the back of her mind. Still, she couldn't believe she'd fallen for it. The Uchiha, coming up with the idea of using Uzumaki's clones? Working together with Uzumaki? And breaking away from the plan —even if it would have been a legitimate reason if it were true—and offering to be the  _distraction_  instead of searching himself? (Not to mention actually calling the blonde Uzumaki by name?)

Gods- _damn-_ it, but she was an idiot!

Beside her, Naruto blinked, gears shifting slowly as he tried to absorb her words. "Wait...what?"

"It was a  _trap!"_ She practically bit out, too upset with herself to be able to maintain the unaffected mask she usually wore. Honestly, how could she have been so…so  _stupid?_  "He used a genjutsu and a bunshin to trick me into thinking it was actually true when it was really just a bunshin with a layered genjutsu—!!" she all but snarled. _Ughhh._  She was such an idiot! To be tricked so easily…!

"Wh—Whoa, wait— Wait, _seriously?!"_ Naruto exclaimed, eyes wide with shock as he watched this...not-so-subtle breakdown, as the brunette scowled, going so far as to pace and even growl as she ruffled her hair in agitation.

"There's no way Uchiha-san could have lasted this long against Hatake-san. Not against a Jounin and Ex-AnBu Captain," she muttered, still beating herself up over the fact that she'd— she'd thought—

"Wait a— Ex-AnBu?!  _Those masked guys?!_ "

The undignified yelp and change in expression as the blonde gaped at Kohaku would have been comical if she hadn't been so agitated. As it was, it snapped her out of her thoughts.

Taking a deep breath and looking around, her eyes found the clock that the Jounin had set before this whole fiasco. Chewing her lip, Kohaku thought about it for a moment. Maybe...—Maybe if they switched the alarm off, or changed the time or something, they would have more of a chance…?

Her stomach made a strange sound, the not-quite rumble reminding her of a long since forgotten problem.

No, they were too low on energy. But...

Hesitating, Kohaku thought about it some more. Maybe… Maybe if—

Taking a deep breath, she turned back to the no longer gaping blonde that was now simply staring at her in worry. He had tried to ask her how she'd known, but she'd been too absorbed in her thoughts to answer.

"Kohaku…?" Amber irises blinked once more, and finally,  _finally_  his teammate turned her attention back to him. "You, uh, you okay, datte bayo?"

Kohaku stared at him for a bit, before coming to a decision. "Uzumaki-san—" "It's jus' Naruto, 'tte bayo!" "—if I give you another nutrient bar do you think you'd have enough energy for a three-prong attack against Hatake-san?" She asked, ignoring the protest for her to 'just call him Naruto' (though she'd eventually relent enough to at least start using '-kun' later on), as she dug out another bar, the blonde shutting up quickly as she continued.

She had exactly three left, having only eaten one earlier and not having had time to eat another. That would be just enough for one each if she could get everyone to work together. Honestly, by now it wasn't so much about ending things quickly as much as regaining the bit of pride she'd felt she'd lost (Even if it didn't seem like it, she  _did_  have her pride, after all. Seriously though, falling for such a  _stupid—...!_  Kohaku took a deep breath here, trying to force herself to calm down). Throwing one of the three bars she had left at the blonde and quickly pulling one out for herself as well, she waited for an answer.

"Wh— y-yeah! Of course, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed, eyes wide as he (once again) fumbled to catch the bar, holding the thing almost reverently as he listened to her explain her idea. This… Only Iruka and the Hokage had ever really believed in him, and for Kohaku to believe he could do something… to  _trust_  him to be able to do it—!

Well, Naruto swore he'd definitely do what he was asked to do!

Or die trying, dattebayo! And Uzumaki Naruto  _never_  went back on his word!

...

Even  _if_  it meant working with that stupid Sasuke-bastard…

* * *

**A** fter watching Naruto head off to do as she'd requested, Kohaku threw her senses out, trying to find the last member of the party they'd need. Concentrating everything into her hearing since the scent trails had been messed up by the horde of Naruto-clones already ages ago, she listened for the sounds of movement and speech, only vaguely catching a bit of sound, before her eyes shot open and she was on her way.

Keeping her senses sharp as she made her way towards the sound, and moving as quickly as possible, she just barely managed to miss their would-be sensei as he headed back to the starting point. (He'd already figured that Naruto would likely have managed to get himself free by now. In the unlikely off-chance that he was still there, though he'd planned to taunt the blonde to goad him into thinking more and being careful in the future —or, rather, he would have, had Kohaku not conscripted him to her 'cause'.)

By the time she found the half-buried Uchiha, it would take her a moment more to really take the scene in, expression once again smooth though a bit more blank than usual as she stared at the strange scene.

"...Uchiha-san…?" she blinked, watching as the raven-haired boy stopped wiggling to look up, almost looking somewhat embarrassed at being caught in this situation.

"...Tsukino," he grunted, still feeling rather disgruntled at being caught in such a position.

At least it wasn't Naruto, though. There was no way he would've been able to live through that idiot's obnoxious laughter and finger-pointing. And, loath as he was to admit it, Tsukino wasn't  _so_  bad… The other genin-hopeful seemed to have some brains at least, so that was a point. (And would make the team a  _lot_  more bearable if they could just freaking  _pass_  already.)

"...Would you like some help with that?" she asked, waving vaguely in the direction of his... _predicament_ , as she stepped closer.

"...Hn," he wouldn't be against it at the very least, and, after hesitating for just a moment, gave a small nod of agreement. It rankled his pride, but considering that Kakashi was a freaking  _Jounin_  to their measly —and apparently— not-yet Genin, it probably wasn't so surprising in the end. Scowling at the dirt as he was, he missed the fleeting and almost imperceptible smile that crossed the amber eyed genin's face as she spoke up once more.

"Understood. Please don't struggle, then," being all he heard before he was staring at the arm sinking into the dirt before him. And because of the fact that he'd been staring down, he'd missed the sequence of hand seals she'd made for the Doton-style earth-walking technique.

Of course, it was technically also called the 'Iwagakure no Jutsu' seeing as Iwagakure had been the place that had founded and used it to the point of being a staple, but, well...

Maybe Tsukino would be of some use after all, the Uchiha thought, resisting the urge to slap the other's hand away (not that he could have anyways, honestly speaking) as she brought him along for the ride, pulling him out of the Earth with a bit of chakra enhanced strength.

Nothing like Tsunade's super-strength, of course, but enough to supplement the brunette's physical strength a bit without risking too much strain on her body (something that most shinobi should have known how to do anyway, even if wasn't with quite the precision she seemed to be careful to use —there had been quite a few books supporting the fact that  _too much_ could cause _permanent damage_  of the body, after all).

And as Sasuke stumbled out of the dirt, pulling himself up straight as he moved away from the pit left from his removal, he couldn't quite help but to stare a bit, wondering just where the other had learned such a jutsu. Especially considering that it was supposedly a staple jutsu mostly known to Iwa-nin.

The actual —but unspoken— answer was, of course, from her legal guardian (aka: her uncle) had during one of those rare days that he'd both be  _home_  and in a good enough mood (or at least wasn't too tired) to teach or help her 'train' a bit. Seeing as most of the Mikazuki clan were usually either best suited to earth and/or water techniques (for a variety of reasons), it wasn't so far-fetched that he'd have taught her an earth release (and/or possibly even a water release) jutsu once he'd deemed her skilled enough in chakra control to be able to safely do so. (There was also the chakra pool limitation, but as a clan consisting solely of Ninja's, that wasn't as much of a problem as it would have been for a Civilian-born trying to do the same.)

As it was, however, he just huffed and brushed himself off as Kohaku carefully cut the connection that she'd made to ensure she could safely bring the raven-haired genin along. Whether it was pride or ego that kept him from asking about it, though, it really didn't matter. Especially since Sasuke already knew a few elemental jutsu of his own as it was. He doubted Naruto would know any, but even if he was the dead last of their class, he wouldn't put it past the idiot-blonde to actually  _know_  some kind of jutsu but forget all about it. (Seriously, the fuck was with those solid clones?  _Kage_  bunshin? _What the hell?_ )

As the avenger frowned, his amber-eyed companion blinked, watching for a moment before clearing her throat when it seemed he might just be... _stuck_ in whatever thoughts he was thinking. She didn't know whether the very person said Uchiha happened to be thinking about would be able to get his part of the plan she'd concocted —and executable thanks to the reservoir of Chakra and Boundless Energy that was Uzumaki Naruto— done without being found out or not, after all. As things were, once the black-eyed teen's eyes met hers, she began to speak, trying to be clear and concise with as few words as she could.

They didn't have much time, after all. And she'd only told Naruto to move it back ten or fifteen minutes at most so that the Jounin didn't get too suspicious. Especially since most of the more skilled ninja were known for having a scarily accurate inner body clock.

* * *

**A** s a certain silver-haired Jounin arrived at the edge of the clearing, he slowed down a bit, having not bothered to use shunshin considering he hadn't seen any need for it. He doubted any of the kiddies had known how to use it anyway since none of them had bothered  _to_  use it yet. As it was, the blindingly orange jacket was the first thing his eye took note of as they scanned across the clearing.

He'd come in contact with a few more mixed groups of illusory and kage bunshin, and if not for the fact that he already  _knew_  he'd taken care of Sasuke, he might have fallen for the mixed groups. No doubt Kohaku's idea, since he doubted Naruto would have been able to come up with the idea of working with Sasuke if he didn't have to.

It was still somewhat impressive, however, since the kage bunshin mixed in made it a bit more difficult to distinguish —not that he couldn't if he tried, of course, but...well, he  _had_  decided to give himself a handicap, considering that it would rankle the dog-summoner's pride if he'd had to go full out on a  _genin_  that hadn't even _become_  full genin just yet.

_Yet_ , not 'maybe'.

Kakashi never noticed that, somewhere in his mind, he'd already come to the decision that they would pass. That they  _would_  become genin.  _His_  genin, to be more exact.

Still, it might have impressed him more if the obvious Naruto-clones were able to act better.

Of course, he might not have noticed the ploy until later if not for the two he'd come across after taking care of the so-called 'last Uchiha'.

To think that they'd send out so many groups of clones… Obviously Kohaku —and by extension Naruto— was making full use of what the group had to use in their arsenal. Still, watching as Naruto attempted to mess with the clock on the stump he'd left it on, waiting and watching from close enough to hear and see but not enough for the genin's sharp nose or ears to find him if he didn't want him to, the ex-AnBu Captain waited patiently for the perfect moment.

"Eheheh… Yosh! Set the clock back far enough. No way that stupid scarecrow'll notice!" The blonde laughed, unaware that said 'scarecrow' was right there — _yet_ , anyways. "Alright! Now I just gotta meet up with Kohaku and… and that  _Sasuke-teme_ , and we'll definitely be able to get those bells!" The orange-wearing boy all but yelled, practically announcing his intentions to the world.

Kakashi sweat, wondering if the blonde even understood what the word  _discretion_  meant. Especially in conjunction to being a ninja. Bad enough that the boy insisted on wearing that eye-searing orange, but… well, at least it made things easier for Kakashi himself as he continued to listen to the muttering blonde.

"Oh, but I'm definitely not gonna be giving a bell to that bastard, though! But, _ughhh_ … Kohaku said…" He muttered, scowling as he stood to carefully set the clock back exactly where it had been before (that much was a plus for him, ninja-wise, at least), having kept behind it despite the fact that his attempt to conceal himself hadn't gone quite as well as he'd probably like. Especially considering that he hadn't been able to keep all of the baggy track suit he wore from poking out on one side of the post anyway (not even mentioning that the 'missing' clock had already been quite a tell by itself). "Twelve minutes'll definitely be enough to grab the bells though...right?" He muttered, unaware that Kakashi had already moved to crouch on top of the stump behind him.

"Oh?" The casual tone seemed to freeze the blonde. The man almost laughed at the sweat that rapidly formed and began falling at an almost impressive pace on the boy. "Trying to cheat by setting the clock back now, are you?" The man mused, it  _had_  been a good idea after all (It's not like he'd forbidden them from doing so, after all). Though he did wonder just what kind of magic Kohaku had spun on the ramen-lover to get him to even pretend to agree to work with his so-called 'rival'.

(Kakashi refused to think that the blonde was so attention-starved that even a little kindness would make him put aside whatever 'grudge' or 'rivalry' he had just to please the one who gave it to him. After all,  _he_  hadn't been there beyond having been one of the AnBu on rotation to be assigned to the blonde before the man had been forcefully retired. Had never even really  _tried_  after losing Minato-sensei and Obito, Kushina-san,  _and_  Rin…

(Somewhere, deep in the recessed of the nearly broken man's mind, a shadow of a whisper carrying the name of his deceased father was added to the list. The one who'd started the then-child's slow if downward spiral into closing himself off from his emotions. Something that he would likely have  _succeeded_ in doing rather than just being somewhat emotionally awkward thanks to the efforts of Minato-sensei.)

"Eheh...heh…it— uh, it was...just a joke…? Aha...ha...ha," the blonde laughed awkwardly, his grip on the clock the man had brought tightening as he stepped away from the post.

Blue eyes remained wary, glancing to either side as if running might give him a chance before he ended up bumping into another figure. Eyes widening in shock as the blonde slowly, reluctantly (and this was really starting to feel stupidly familiar) looked up.

" _Boo_."

The last thought Naruto had before he got caught was that at least the man hadn't arrived while he'd still been scarfing down the tasteless nutrient bar Kohaku had given him.

(Yep, Hatake Kakashi would willingly blind himself to the emotions that had been all but expertly hidden by the blonde. He was already feeling guilty as it was for all of his conceived  _failures..._ No matter the fact that he was still considered so 'famous' and/or 'successful' as a high ranking Jounin within the ninja world.)

The brunette had been so  _nice_  to him after all. Even if they'd never really interacted before now, at least there was none of the  _judgment_  or  _hatred_  that been in the eyes of so many of the other villagers. Sure, the brunette hadn't seemed to care much, but that… Even  _that_  was better than the other option.

( _After all, throwing himself into his work hadn't done anything aside from keeping him distracted. But even tiring himself out by pushing himself so hard and ruthlessly hadn't been able to do a thing for the nightmares he'd still have almost every night, just_ remembering  _the things that had happened. All the people he'd failed, and eventually…lost._ )

So Naruto would be damned before he ratted the other out.

Especially if there was the smallest chance of being able to make  _friends_  with the guy.

(Neither Kakashi nor Naruto would ever admit to the desperation that they each felt, hidden from all the faces that surrounded them.

(Neither could afford to acknowledge that they were truly  _broken_ , after all.)

* * *

**S** asuke was almost — _almost—_ impressed. (He was, actually, though he'd never admit it. Well, not  _this_  Sasuke anyway.) Though reluctant to have to work with the dead-last, he had to admit that the brunette's plan had merit. It would be win-win...sort of (he still had doubts about teaming up with the blonde, but considering that the blonde's skill might end up coming in useful after all...as a distraction if nothing else)...

It was still a better chance than he would have expected. Especially after being beaten so  _thoroughly_ by that _wretched scarecrow._

(Never let it be said that Uchiha weren't a prideful bunch. The fact that they were also a  _vengeful_  bunch, well... That could be left unsaid, of course.)

Had it been prior to the... _skirmish_...that he'd had with the man, he might have refused. Honestly believing that there was  _still a chance_  that  _he_  could beat the man, and by himself at that. As it was, being so thoroughly defeated... Well, at the very least  _some_  form of vengeance was necessary to sooth his battered pride. (A similarity he apparently shared with Tsukino, if in varying levels.)

Not to mention that they were running low on time. Even with the extra time to be gained by the blonde idiot — _if he_   _succeeded—_ there was still the fact that none of them had even been able to  _touch_  the bells, let alone snatch them from the man.

_And if he had to work with an idiot to get that stupid bell off that infuriating scarecrow, then by the gods Uchiha Sasuke would do so_.

He was  _not_  going to fail before he even had a chance to gain the strength to  _kill that man_. At this point, he really didn't care what he had to do as long as he could pass.

And since Kohaku had  _actually managed to come up with a viable plan to use_ , then he would —albeit somewhat reluctantly— follow the more (and he really,  _really_  didn't want to admit this) level-headed brunette for the moment.

Although, really, it was mostly because Sasuke honestly couldn't think of a better idea at the moment. That was  _it_. Really.

Still, after having devoured the nutrient bar Kohaku had passed him and finding himself feeling much more capable than before, he and the brunette had discussed the plan as they'd made their way back to the original clearing they'd started off in. Hopefully, with the extra time they were given, they could nab the bells from the man and play keep away with the Jounin for as long as was needed to out-wait the alarm they'd reset.

As they reached the edge and hid themselves, however, the two —unaware of the change in circumstances— could only grimace as they caught sight of a captured Naruto. The silver-haired Jounin wearing a smile that could somehow still be made out on his masked face as he stood behind the squirming and scowling blonde as he read at leisure.

And though Sasuke didn't care for the blonde (so long as  _he_  passed, he could honestly care less whether Naruto did or not), it would make things a little more difficult in getting the bells.

As much of an eyesore as the orange-wearing idiot was, after all, he was still a  _distracting_  eyesore. One that might even have keep the man's attention off them long enough for one of the other two to grab a bell.

Thankfully, the man hadn't seemed to have caught onto their ploy —or so it seemed, anyway.

* * *

**N** aruto, on the other hand, was pissed. Struggling against the ropes that kept him trapped, he glared at the silver-haired man standing off to one side of the stupid post he'd been tied to. Even if it was with more annoyance than anger (and maybe even a little desperation, not that he'd ever admit it).

The man was a  _cheating bastard_  —not that he could really talk considering what he'd been doing when he'd been caught— and damned if the blonde was going to fail when Kohaku had  _believed in him_  and put his _trust_ in the dead-last to actually succeed.

Aside from Hokage-jiji and Iruka,  _no one_  had ever —well, okay, Ayame and Ichiraku-ossan had, but they weren't  _ninja_ , they were civilians. And thus didn't _really_ understand all the ninja-stuff all that well. (Not to say that they were worth any less —as far as Naruto was concerned, they were all but  _gods_  considering the deliciousness of the ramen they made! In fact, to Naruto, the father-daughter pair were only  _that much more awesome_  for it.)

And so Naruto struggled and squirmed, trying to free himself so he could warn the others about the impending trap. Even just getting the blasted tape that silver-haired bastard had pasted over his mouth would be enough.

_Please, please,_  please _let me make it 'tte bayo!_  He prayed, almost desperately, as he struggled. Efforts renewed and becoming even more vigorous as he heard the man start to speak, clearly talking to Kohaku and Sasuke now.

Kohaku had  _believed_  in him —and he'd be  _damned_  if he let the other boy (unaware of the other's true gender) down…

* * *

**W** atching warily as Kakashi hummed, the duo tried to communicate through looks, especially since it seemed that Naruto had been caught. Should one of them free the blonde? If so, who was going to be the distraction?

Silently shaking his head and motioning towards the brunette, Sasuke jerked his head towards Kakashi, signaling that he'd distract the silverette. If he managed to get a bell in the process, even better.

Pursing her lips just the slightest bit as she thought about it, Kohaku reluctantly nodded, pulling out a kunai, and holding it up quizzically as she tilted her head in question.

Sasuke shook his head, signaling that he had enough even if his stores were a bit depleted from all the ones he'd wasted before. Besides, he wasn't going to take charity from anyone, let alone the other genin-to-be. He was  _Uchiha Sasuke,_  after all.

As Kohaku nodded in response to the question he pantomimed after, they slowly, carefully, separated, making sure to keep both the other and the Jounin himself in sight, as Sasuke lifted three fingers.

On the count of three, they would attack.

Across the field where he had been patiently waiting, Kakashi chuckled, "I know you're there, you know~" He mused, projecting his voice enough to ensure that the other two would be able to hear him. And it was true, he'd been keeping an eye out on the edges of the clearing so he'd know when they arrived.

Being as  _magnanimous_  as he was, he'd allowed the time shift, though it'd still taken the other two a while to get there. No doubt having had to waste some time digging the Uchiha out of the pit he'd packed him into. As it was, there were only a few minutes left until the clock hit 'twelve'. He was still confident that he would win against them, after all.

Smiling that ever insincere smile, Kakashi chuckled to himself, thinking about just how much he loved it when plans came together.

In the woods, Sasuke and Kohaku shared a quizzical look, only really able to read each other's unspoken question because 1. Sasuke was an Uchiha (and Uchiha were taciturn for the most part anyway so being able to read people —or at least, other taciturn people— was a must), and 2. Because Kohaku and her uncle were both quiet people, and preferred not to have to waste their breaths when they didn't have to, which basically translated to nonverbal cues whenever they could get away with it.

Of course, there had been some miscommunication here and there, but overall, most of the gestures were universal, and really weren't all that hard to guess in context. (Logic, despite being something that ninja supposedly defied a lot, was still the best friend of anyone with enough brain cells to rub together.)

Coming to a decision, the two nodded, deciding to simply do as planned. Marking the seconds in their heads, they waited for the exact moment they'd decided on before they shot out of the foliage —and  _lunged._

* * *

**I** t was infuriating. Despite the fact that most of the plan had gone through seemingly  _without a hitch_ , they'd still lost in the end. None of them having expected the man to lay a  _trap_  for them at the last moment. Of course, lack of information hadn't helped, but neither of the darker haired members of the group had expected for the Naruto they'd cut loose to actually be  _Kakashi_ in disguise.

The infuriating man had played them at almost every turn, and it was enough to make all _three_ of the genin's blood boil. Of course, not to say that the other copy-nin that had been  _standing there as if he were the real thing_  wasn't, it was just that—

Well, the man had had them fooled, playing as Naruto  _perfectly_  til the last second. Just when they'd thought that they would finally able to try to gang up on the man, too —only for the real Naruto to come barreling out from behind one of the other posts, yelling about a trap even as he was still tearing the tape away from his face.

Needless to say, both of the darker haired ninja-in-training had been startled and shocked for those precious few seconds. A few seconds long enough for the fake to grin a foxy grin not unlike Naruto's as it —and what they'd _assumed_ to be Kakashi— lunged at the two preteens, the fake Naruto's disguise dispelling in a way that was slowly becoming very, very familiar (not to mention _irritating_ ).

Looking absolutely horrified, the real Naruto had attempted to stop the man, apparently forgetting about the fact that he could create  _bunshin_  to help bolster the attack —only to be caught by another of the retired AnBu Captain's  _own_  kage bunshin that had  _apparently been waiting in the gods damned shadows by pretending to be the freaking_ clock.

The three kids had been shocked at the sudden turnabout even as the Jounin had laughed, clearly amused by the situation. Of course, despite having expended a little more energy than he'd expected, he'd still won. Even after holding back a majority of his skills and keeping only to those abilities the genin had used as well as low-ranking Ninjutsu of the same level when the call came for it.

And so there they were, with the real clock (which Kakashi had pulled out of one of his stupid pouches himself) going off just as all the dust finished clearing.

Even going so far as to goad them.

"Did you really think I'd fall for such a trick?" He'd mused, eye crinkled in too much amusement to be able to feign being as wounded as he stated he was. "I'm wounded, really, and to think that you'd even try to cheat by setting back the clock~" He'd chided them, even as Naruto gave them a sheepish look.

"Still, I did say that one of you would be tied to the post. Even if you all did end up being a little better than I'd expected~" Smiling, he released the trio, dismissing his clones with a neat little trick to siphon back at least a portion of the chakra he'd expended to make them as they dispelled. It wasn't perfect, and by no means did it let him take back  _all_  the chakra he'd used, but it was still better than nothing (and in the heat of a real battle, could have been the difference between living and dying —or at least strong enough to escape and being captured or killed).

Feeling far more rejuvenated now, he hummed, pretending to contemplate the matter.

"So? Who was it, then? The one who came up with this idea? Turning back the clock to get more time, hm? A good idea to be sure, but not one that  _Naruto_  of all people could come up with," he smiled, despite already knowing who it was.

_Let's see if they take the bait_ , the man thought, watching the genin-to-be with amusement as they shifted.

"Hey! I could totally come up with that idea! And I  _did!_ " Naruto exclaimed, surprising the other two as he covered for the kunoichi of the team.

Kakashi hummed, eye crinkling once more as he watched the blonde defend his teammates so vehemently.

(Maybe they had a chance, after all.)

"Oh, really? So you're saying you  _want_  to be tied up on the log again?" He smiled, eye curving into a crescent shape as he hid his amusement. "I won't go easy on you this time, though~ And you'll have to watch your  _oh-so-precious teammates_  eat. right. in. front. of. you.~" he warned him, tone practically gleeful, and continuing before the others could speak up or protest.

"You've all failed the test after all. So what do you even gain from covering for one of these two? Admit it, it wasn't you, was it? I'll bet it one of those two," he 'deduced'. "Sasuke, perhaps? Ah, but _you_ two haven't been able to get in contact, have you? So it'd have to be Kohaku. Am I wrong?"

Biting her lip, Kohaku opened her mouth. No point in denying it at this point since it was true.

Not to mention that they'd failed, anyway, so why let someone else take the blame when it really was her idea, anyway? Before she could though, Naruto started yelling again. "Like hell! I said that  _I_ did it, didn't I?!  _Don't pick on my friend, you big jerk!_ " Unconsciously, the budding hope of him making a friend had ended up slipping into his sentence. It wasn't until seeing the shocked, wide eyed expression on Kohaku's face that he realized what he'd said, as the blonde snapped his mouth shut, now flustered. "I— I mean...! That's—"

Kakashi chuckled, tone easy as he grinned. "Well then, suit yourself~ The post it is!" Easily re-tying the blonde to the stump before any of them could even blink, he pat his hands as if on a job well done before cheerfully resting them on his hips.

Ignoring the blonde who'd started yelling again —along with the two genin that remained in defensive position as they watched him with wary eyes— he spoke up again.

"Still, it'd be a shame to send  _all_  of you back to the Academy, I suppose," he apparently mused. "Even though you cheated, the idea was a good one, and I can't say I hate your spunk~" He all but teased, smiling at the three.

"Alright~ Since I'm  _so_  nice," he announced, ignoring the derisive snort that the blonde behind him gave as he turned back to the two darker haired genin. "I'll give you guys  _one_  more chance," he told them. "After lunch you can try again," he decided, watching as they all perked up a little before continuing with almost vicious glee. " _However_ , you can't give Naruto, here, any food.  _At all_. If I find out that you have…" He started, voice threatening as he made it seem like he was looming over them, the smile in his tone never disappearing as a dark, menacing chuckle escaped from his mask.

" _All three of you_   _will fail..._ " he announced, lightning seeming to strike from a sudden gathering of thunderclouds before he decided to lighten the atmosphere, gesturing towards the two unopened bento on the ground beside the blonde.

It seemed he might not even need to give the three the 'teamwork' speech. Well, not yet, at least.

As it was, he smiled at the trio as they continued to watch him with silent, wide eyed wariness. "Maa, I'll let you get to your food. I'm _sure_ you're hungry, after all," he eye-smiled, almost teasingly, as he hummed. Getting ready to shunshin out of their senses. "And remember~

" _If I catch you feeding the blonde_ …" he trailed off ominously, disappearing in a puff of smoke.

* * *

**F** or a moment, all three of the genin-to-be simply stared at the spot the man had been standing, before exchanging a slow and equally disturbed glance. A second chance, which meant all three of them. And as much as the thought niggled at her mind, Kohaku couldn't help but to think that something was... _off_...about the entire situation.

Could the man really stop them from becoming genin? Only the Hokage could decide that... _right?_

As Sasuke slowly reached for the bento, silently offering the other to Kohaku, the girl continue to think. Something was wrong,  _really_  wrong here, but—

Wait.

'You', as in...all  _three_  of them would get another chance. Why bother with letting Naruto —or even  _them—_  try again if he was just going to fail them anyway…? Staring at the bento box in her hands as Sasuke carefully unwrapped his own to take a peek, she hesitated.

As it was, she still felt incredibly guilty that Naruto had taken the fall for the Clock Stunt. In retrospect, despite being a so-called 'good idea', it could have very well ruined their chances _permanently_ if Hatake-san had not decided to let the fact go (and maybe she could have blamed it on a lack of brain-sugar, but  _she_  was still the one that had decided it was a good idea and tried to implement it).

So  _why_  was he letting them try again? She wondered, incredibly confused despite the impassive expression on her face.

Slowly, and almost reluctantly (guiltily) opening the bento and staring at it, she startled when Naruto spoke up. "Hey, don't worry about me! Just eat, you need the energy right? And— and hey, at least some of us'll pass if you can just get the stupid bell from him!" He grinned, trying to seem fine despite the pit that had fallen only a few minutes ago.

(He always had been good at pulling the Jester.)

Kohaku gave the blonde a hesitant look, doubly so when his stomach gurgled. And loudly at that. He clearly having a far higher metabolism than either of the others if he was continuously as hungry as he seemed.

"Eheh...I—I'll be fine, really!" he exclaimed, his eyes crinkling almost shut as he gave the other a foxy grin, acting with bravado that he didn't quite feel. (Though that was just the norm for him, wasn't it?)

Glancing over at Sasuke, she began to speak, slowly questioning the blonde. If Sasuke didn't like it, he could voice his displeasure —or even try to stop her, but…

"Naruto… can you make a kage bunshin and use it to replace yourself…?" she asked quietly, laying the disposable chopsticks that had come with bento down on the edges of the container. Ignoring the quizzical look as she spoke. " _I'm_  fine, however...if we're really going to have to face that man again…" she trailed off as Sasuke gave her an indecipherable look.

Almost nervously, a hand went up to clutch at the hitaeate now hanging around her neck, the wide, almost turtle-neck like collar of her coat folded back so that it, and the black cloth she'd attached it to, were both visible to anyone who cared to look.

A nervous habit, but better than being an obvious trait if she simply started fiddling her fingers.

"I...really don't think that just  _two_  of us will be enough to take him on," she continued, remembering their earlier attempts. Herself and Sasuke, Sasuke by himself (though she hadn't seen it, the boy had obviously lost —and spectacularly at that, though she knew better than to bring it up in front of the Uchiha— against the more experienced shinobi),  _Naruto_  attempting to by himself —and even counting his bunshin fighting along with him for a time...

"But— but if he finds out, you guys'll fail too!" Naruto exclaimed, distressed despite the light, bubbly feeling that seemed to well up, filling his chest. He  _cared._  Kohaku was still being nice even though he'd failed and gotten caught and— and… blinking as he felt the burn of the tears building in his ducts, he quickly blinked a few more times to get rid of the sensation. Simply pretending that he was just doing it in...like, confusion or something. Yeah! (He was  _not crying_ , damn it!)

Beside Kohaku, Sasuke pressed his lips together, clearly thinking about the instances he, himself, had seen and been involved in, still listening as Kohaku shook her head. "I— even if we tried by ourselves, we'd...we'd probably just be sent back to the Academy anyway," she admitted, albeit reluctantly. Though she wasn't quite...arrogant...she was still only twelve—almost thirteen—ish. And though it was rare and hard for others to realize, she  _did_  have a sense of pride and— and it  _rankled_ , to get played so  _easily_  by the Jounin.

Yeah, sure, he was a  _Jounin_ , and famous, and way more experienced on top of being an _elite_ , but that didn't mean it didn't still  _bother her_.

And honestly, Sasuke felt the same, though the other might never admit it.

Scowling into the bento in their laps, it took a moment before the brunette spoke again.

"Besides, how would he know if you're still tied to the stump when he comes back?" she asked, almost rhetorically, "Out of all of us, I think Uzumaki-sa—...Uzumaki...-kun...is the one who would benefit most from eating the bento," she told him, expression determined, even as the blonde looked hesitant (though he'd brightened at the change in suffix, at least).

"So...can you?" she asked, brow furrowed a bit as she studied the ropes. It didn't look like the Jounin had done much more than simply tie the rope around his chest after looping it enough times to keep it secure and make it harder for Naruto to free himself.

Chewing on his lip, Naruto hesitated but…  _but—_

"I—" he started, almost meek and uneasy unlike his usual rambunctious self. But, well, "I can...try?" he said at last, tone quiet. He didn't want to disappoint the brunette again. Not after how  _nice_ he had been —and was  _still_ being— to him.

Kohaku nodded. "As long as Uzumaki-kun can replace himself and dismiss the clone before Hatake-san returns, I think we'll be fine," she said, looking at Sasuke to see how he'd react. And, when he said nothing in response, either agreeing or not caring, she looked back to Naruto.

Seeing the other genin's eyes on him, Naruto pulled up all the confidence and bravado that he could, concentrating on moving his hands as close as possible so that they could make the hand signs despite the discomfort of rope digging into his flesh, even as Sasuke carefully watched from the corner of his eye so that he could take note.

" _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ " The blonde hissed, trying to be discreet but really saying it at a normal speaking volume after taking a look around to make doubly sure that Kakashi really wasn't around, only engaging once he felt absolutely sure that he wasn't.

A copy of himself came into existence in a puff of smoke, grinning but keeping quiet  _just in case,_  as well, making the necessary hand signs to perform the Kawarimi as it replaced the real Naruto with a smaller puff of smoke than the creation of the clone had.

"I—It worked!" cheered the real Naruto, pumping both arms in the air before quieting himself and sitting down by the others with a grin as he remembered himself.

Sasuke gave a quiet "Hn" but continued eat, if at a slower pace. To be honest, he wasn't really that hungry, only deciding to eat for appearance's sake (though he did pick out any and all of the tomatoes). Watching as Kohaku passed her bento over, reassuring Naruto that it was fine for him to eat it all (and cringing at the blonde's deplorable manners as per usual). He scowled into his food before glancing at the other two again.

Nodding to himself, he put the chopsticks down and held the rest of it out almost forcefully to the brunette, who only blinked in surprise and confusion, even as Naruto slowed down in devouring the bento as quickly as he could (he didn't want the others to be caught, after all) to stare as well. Seeing the quizzical look on the brunette's face (or rather, the quizzical tilt of her head as she stared), he huffed. "Just having the dobe's not going to help," he muttered, refusing to look at his other teammates-to-be.

It was only logical, after all, that he ensure that all of them were up to snuff in order to get the stupid bells. So long as Sasuke got one for himself, he didn't care if Kohaku wanted to get Naruto to make a kage bunshin copy of the bell for the other two. They were just stepping stones to obtaining the strength he needed to kill Itachi, after all. So long as they didn't get caught, what did he care about cheating his way through? They were  _ninja_ , after all. It was basically their job description.

Seeing the brunette still hesitate, he huffed again. "I'm not that hungry anyways," he added, giving the other a meaningful look. "...After lunch," he started, thoughts slipping before realizing what he'd said, refusing to show embarrassment as he forced himself to continue.

"After lunch, we'll work together to get the bells, so...without actual food you'll both just be in the way," he all but muttered, refusing to look at the other two.

Slowly, carefully, Kohaku accepted the bento along with the sentiments behind them, even if she still didn't quite understand it. It made sense of course, but that didn't mean she wasn't still confused.

It was true, though, the nutrient bars only filled the bare minimum of what a person needed to survive. They weren't supposed to be anything more than a supplement, something to distract the body from hunger and to avoid collapsing until they  _could_ get actual food.

Beside her, Naruto all but grinned, feeling his heart lift as Sasuke acknowledged  _him_  in a way as well.

Unbeknownst to them, Kakashi smiled to himself from where he'd concealed himself —just outside the trio's range and ability to sense. Allowing them to have their little moment before he interrupted the budding camaraderie as he thought to himself.

It seemed he was going to be having himself an actual genin team, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so ends the first 'Arc', so to speak. Next up will be a separately posted Interlude for the series featuring Sakura and her new teammates, and after that, the beginning of a brand new arc!
> 
> I hope you'll all look forward to it, as I've got plans for at least the bit before the Wave Arc. Tentative ideas for after that, but until the next Arc is done, I can't really say for 100% Certainty.
> 
> Also, some of you might have noticed, but Kohaku is very clearly rather socially inept. 
> 
> Then again, so are her teammates. They're all a little better in different aspects, but honestly, I think all of them are rather stunted in various ways. Kohaku, herself, doesn't understand Naruto's actions and/or reactions towards herself. She doesn't realize that Naruto's already started to 'idolize' (for lack of a better word) her, in a way.
> 
> Unlike Sakura, who is really nothing more than an obsessive fangirl at this point in time, Kohaku is far calmer. She honestly doesn't care for that sort of thing, and has pretty much been more of a loner up til now, anyways. Not to say that she doesn't like people, she's just more introverted and dislikes crowds. 
> 
> Of course, she can still be caught up in her thoughts/beliefs/emotions, though she thinks more logically than some of the others, and prefers to do things that aren't so 'troublesome' in the words of a certain Nara. She's not a Nara or a genius, though, so sometimes that ends up rather hilariously or just pitifully off the mark. 
> 
> I could say more, but I don't really want to spoil any more, and part of the 'experiment' in writing this is challenging myself to let you, the reader, learn more about her by seeing from and understanding the various characters' points of view. Hopefully I'm doing it justice, though.
> 
> Do note that most of the Interludes, Omake's, and One-Shots in relation to but not part of the main story-line will be posted as separate stand-alone's or inter-related/alternate branches of this series.
> 
> Til Next Time! And as usual, not only do I not own Naruto, but I also self-beta my work, so please excuse any misses. I'm only human, after all.


	5. Genin Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The genin have finally passed their final test on the road to becoming genin. However, now that they've passed and officially become Team 7, they find themselves in... D-Rank Hell...? And worse yet, not only does Kakashi's 'lateness' seem to be a chornic habit, but he's not even teaching them anything as a Sensei should!
> 
> It won't be long before something explodes, and Naruto's not so sure it won't be him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Genin Days", also known as "D-Rank Hell". This chapter ended up being completely different from what I'd originally planned. Well, it did take certain sections of it, but, between trying to decide whether to change up their first C-rank or not, I ended up getting buried under a pile of Kakashi- and Kohaku- related plunnies (trolls, just like their owners, the lot of them! Whether meaning to or not), and here we are.
> 
> A couple of flashbacks in this one, which is something I'm doing for the first time in this series. Hopefully they're readable though. 
> 
> Also, an unrelated side note: the only reason Iruka hasn't appeared yet is because his actions and reactions so far have been 'according to canon'. Like, exactly so. I'm not going to write or go over in detail anything that basically happens 'exactly like canon'. Especially if it's exact canon. 
> 
> Sure, I might occasionally do thoughts and certain scenes if I think they'll be different or even fit, but anything that is 'exactly the same' will be left out or just implied. Rest assured that he will appear, though...eventually... (It's more a question of whether he'll appear in a one-shot/omake/interlude first or an actual chapter first.)
> 
> As usual, 1. I don't own NARUTO. I am not its original creator, and 2. This story is self-beta'd but I think that's as good as saying it's not beta'd at all. So if anyone catches any mistakes, please do let me know! I try to check before and after posting to fix any mistakes whether its a major issues or a minor grammatical error —but, well, I'm only human. I miss things too!
> 
> And now back to our irregularly posted schedule of chapters (which will probably slow once I finish going through the available stock of chapters I have completed).

* * *

  **D** -ranks turned out to be very, very…boring. Or rather, more accurately, they were  _tedious as hell_. Naruto really hadn't expected such a terrible fact to be until they'd had to actually go through them. They weren't even missions! Just stupid chores and things civilians couldn't be bothered to do —or to hire actual experts for (like, fixing a roof or a wall or something, seriously? Just ask a carpenter, datte bayo!) just because they were 'more expensive' than hiring genin most of the time.

Honestly, they could have been using that time to— to  _train_  or something! The blonde thought, scowling as he carelessly swiped a brush across the wooden picket fence they were supposed to be painting. Even worse, Kakashi-sensei had forbidden him from using his kage bunshin to finish up faster! This was  _such_  a waste of time, damn it—!

Taking a deep breath like Kohaku had shown him (not in so many words, since she'd...kinda stopped being as talkative as she had been during the bell test, but enough to get the information through) for when he felt himself getting too aggravated. It didn't always work, seeing as he didn't always remember to do it, but it had turned out to be kind of useful —especially after catching that stupid cat, Tora! He swore that thing was out to get them, the blonde thought-grumbled, calmer than he had been before, but still irritated as he carefully painted over the messy portion he'd simply swathed the fence in when he finally noticed it.

No re-doing work on a stupid D-rank for him! No-siree! Bad enough that they spent most of their time waiting for Kakashi-sensei just to show up only to take a bunch of useless D-ranks that they didn't want to to begin with. And all their stupid sensei did was  _watch_  aside from maybe explaining every now and then or showing them what to do the first time if they had no idea how to do it (which was rare, as it was, but  _still!_  That slacker)!

_No-no-no_ , Naruto stop. Stop thinking about that —think positive! You don't want to have to more D-rank work on top of what you already have! The blonde reminded himself, taking a deep breath...and holding it until his brain felt like a balloon, airy and light. Which...really wasn't what he was supposed to be doing, but he felt like it was easier to let go of the bad mood he had when his brain was feeling too light to hold onto the heavier feelings.

Exhaling in a single large gust-like burst of air, Naruto fixed the mess he'd started making again while trying to think of good things.

"Uh, let's see...Ramen...Ichiraku Ramen…Iruka-sensei…Gramps…" he muttered, only half concentrating on what he was doing as he carefully painted his portion of the fence. It'd still get checked over, but the less mistakes there were, the less time it would take and the sooner he'd be free of the stupid fake-mission! Seriously, this wasn't even training!!

_No-no, not again. C'mon, Naruto! You can do this! Only a third of a section left and you'll be home free!_ He reminded himself, shaking the distractions out of his head as he covered the fence in white paint. At least, uh, at least he still got  _some_  training in? The blonde reminded himself, the statement sounding more like a question to him than it should have.

Waiting for Kakashi-sensei was damn boring, and the trio had taken to training together a bit in the mornings upon finding out that their sensei had a habit of being chronically late.

Or, well, actually, it'd started out with Kohaku going through some kinda Kata or something, and the other two watching in curious silence until Naruto hadn't been able to take it anymore and spoken up to ask about it.

* * *

 "Hey, hey, Kohaku, what're ya doing...?" asked Naruto, watching as the sleepy, typically stone-faced (though the previous day had proved otherwise) brunette went through a strange set of taijutsu movements. Definitely not the standard Academy version...one that Naruto still couldn't really do right, to be honest.

Beside the blonde, the last Uchiha sat as well, arms crossed as he watched the —unbeknownst to them— kunoichi of the team move through a set of kata that looked like it had been all but ingrained into the child.

"...Training," was all she said, not even bothering to explain her reasoning or anything as she moved into a slow lunge, movements sure and steady as she went through the set to make sure she hadn't started picking up bad habits (though it was unlikely considering that she did this pretty much every day) without realizing it. It was a bit awkward with movements that were supposed to be quick like the lunge, but she still managed it somehow.

Not surprising considering that it was something that she'd been doing since quite literally just before starting the Academy.

Of course, she knew a lot more of the kata than she had before, but that was kind of moot point considering that six years had passed in the meantime.

After a while, seeming to realize that she wasn't going to say more, the blonde sweat, deciding to prod some more to get the answers he wanted. "What, uh, what kind of training?" he asked, arms no longer crossed as he planted them on the ground to support himself so he could lean further in towards her, seeming far more relaxed that he had earlier.

Then again, Kohaku didn't care enough about their arguments to stop them unless it looked to be getting too far (something that happened just as often as it didn't), or too loud (apparently she had sensitive ears), which let them get their aggression out for the most part since it'd be 'too much effort' trying to break them up when they'd end up stopping themselves half the time anyway. 

Thus leading to the current scene, something most of the Uchiha's fangirls wouldn't have expected as the two males sat placidly next to each other, for once not goading the other.

"Taijutsu," was all she said, earning a snort from Sasuke and another sweat drop from Naruto.

"Well, uh, yeah, I knew  _that_ ," he said, shooting a glare at the raven-haired avenger, but not doing much more than huffing and sticking his tongue out since he had something else to focus his attention on right now. "But why? And how come it looks so different from all the other kinds we've seen so far?" he asked, practically blurting the questions out.

As the girl finished the last movement of the kata she was on, she sighed, slowly coming to rest before looking at him. By this point, she'd pretty much figured out that the blonde wouldn't leave well enough alone unless she answered the question. At least, not until she did so to his satisfaction, anyway.

Most annoying genin of their class, indeed.

Not that she'd say so. It'd only ensure that blonde got even louder with his words.

"That's because it's a family style," she explained, making sure her words were clear and concise so she wouldn't have to repeat them. "I'm practicing because Hatake-sensei has a habit of being late to everything. It'd be a waste of time to simply sit around doing nothing," she explained, earning a nod from the Uchiha, though the dark-eyed boy did end up scowling at the fact that Kakashi was apparently perpetually late as well.

"What?! Seriously?!" Naruto exclaimed, but that meant… "You mean we're going to be stuck here for hours?!" he cried out, horrified. Hours of just sitting there, doing nothing. Every. Time.

Wait…

"Wait, wait, so— is that why you're training?" the blonde asked, the question rhetorical as he quickly figured it out for himself.

"Hn. That's what he just said, Dobe," came the sneered response of the boy beside him, earning raised hackles from the blonde.

"I know that! It was a rit...retired…" aha! "It was a rhetorical question, Bastard!" the blue-eyed genin shouted, waving a fist at the other boy. "That means it wasn't _supposed_ to be answered, Stupid!" he added, proudly tacking on the information that Iruka-sensei had told him just to show off.

Scowling in response, Sasuke nearly continued the argument as he stood. Only to calm himself since he didn't want to make it seem like the blonde could affect him as much as he could (not that Kohaku and Kakashi, at least, didn't already know considering how much the two fought and argued as it was).

"Hn, glad you know and understand such a 'big word' then," he sneered, unable to resist getting the last word in as he turned to the amber-eyed brunette whose mind had begun to wander while they had been preoccupied. "If that idiot teacher of ours is going to be late, it'd make sense to get some training in," he finally announced, ignoring the blonde's protests, as he began walking away.

He couldn't afford to lose any time training and Kohaku had brought up a good point. It would only aggravate him more if he'd ended up waiting hours upon hours for their lackadaisical teacher to show up doing nothing. And if he was going to be late all the time, he might as well put the extra time to good use. "I'm going to practice over here," he told them, all but dismissing the others, as he got into the starting stance for what he remembered and had read of the Uchiha style of Taijutsu.

"Teme—!!" the blonde yelled after him, waving a fist before huffing and turning away, deciding to be the larger man here. "Whatever, fine!" He scowled, turning back to the brunette who had been watching the scene with seemingly little interest. "Hey, hey, Kohaku!" He grinned, doing a full 180 as he spoke, "Will you help me practice my Taijutsu too, then? It's better if we know how to fight together, right?" he added, almost hopefully.

"...A...practice match, then?" she offered at last, thinking about the question. It was true that having an opponent was the best way to practice —and she'd be able to figure out where she was leaving holes, too… Besides, practicing against different styles was supposed to help, right?

" _Alright!_ Yeah, definitely!" exclaimed the blonde, cheering excitedly.

…

It definitely wasn't because of the damned puppy eyes the blonde had employed, of course not.

Shifting back into a starting stance as she waited for the blonde to calm down, she nodded when all he did was grin and ask if she was ready before moving with a yell.

Kou...Kou would definitely end up regretting giving in to the blonde. But at least she would be getting the practice she probably did need against different styles (even if Naruto's style wasn't so much a style as a botched amalgamation of the Academy's style and straight-out street brawling). And it wouldn't be too long, either, before Sasuke joined in, stating how pathetic Naruto's stances were and to 'watch what a real Taijutsu kata looked like'.

Needless to say, the entire thing had nearly devolved into an all-out brawl, even as it cemented the budding 'tradition' of self —or group— training in the hours that the last Hatake made them wait.

* * *

**B** lack eyes ignored the rest of his team to get the repetitious and tedious chore of getting the stupid fence in front of him painted. He really couldn't help but to scowl at the hands-off approach that Kakashi had taken for the most part. Yes, he now knew that the  _last Hatake_  was actually far more skilled than he portrayed, and that,  _yes_ , the man had previously been in the AnBu corps (though he seriously doubted the whole captaincy claim considering the idiot Jounin's habits), but that didn't mean anything to the last Uchiha if he couldn't freaking  _teach_  properly.

Embarrassing as it was, he was learning and gaining more from practicing with his so-called  _teammates_  than from the man himself. Tree-walking? Apparently a low-ranked chakra-control exercise that was just above Academy level. Something the Scarecrow probably should have been teaching them, but hadn't. Instead, he'd had to find out from a member of his own graduating class about it.

Of course, it had apparently taken the brunette a while to master it and the raven-haired avenger had been determined to get it down faster—and  _absolutely before that idiot blonde_. But that still didn't change the fact that it was a jutsu that another genin  _his age_  had already known. Especially when their Jounin sensei wasn't teaching them any real jutsu as it was.

Oh, he'd stopped by or appeared during breaks and made  _comments_  but that was just about it. The man had kept a 'hands off' approach to it all, and damned if the Uchiha wasn't starting to get pissed off by it. Scowling as he heard the man's annoying voice from the other side of the fence that he was in charge of, the boy couldn't help but to wonder just what  _else_  he didn't know that was supposedly 'elementary ninja jutsu'.

On the other side of the fence, unaware of the dark aura that the last Uchiha was currently exuding, Kohaku continued to carefully paint while just as carefully listening to the man that was their Jounin sensei as he spoke.

* * *

" **H** mm… Maa, well, I suppose it'd be more accurate to say… it's not?" The last Hatake mused. (Ah, what irony that their cell seemed to be full of the 'last' members of the family or clan that they'd come from.)

Seeing the inquisitive blink he got in response to his not-answer, the man almost chuckled, instead simply giving the other a bright smile.

"Hmm, well, y'know, it's sort of like... _that_ , you know?  _That,_ " He said cheerfully, purposely leaving his answers vague. Even in the face of the unimpressed deadpan that his cute little student was wearing. (All three were his cute little students, of course, it was just that he was talking to  _this_  cute little student at the moment. Even if he were to have a favorite...well, he didn't. They were all equally cute in different ways, although it was amusing that the other two still seemed to think that the last member of their group was a boy. He almost felt sorry for the day they figured it out.

(As it was,  _he_  definitely wasn't going to be the one to tell them. It was, after all, something they should have observed or figured out anyway… And  _totally_  not just for the former AnBu's own amusement. Nope, of  _course_ not...)

"Ahaha~ Well, better check that Naruto hasn't made a mess of his portion of the fence!" He mused, trying not to sweat when the stare continued to bore into him even as their owner continued to paint her portion of the fence in meticulous strokes.

And of course he wasn't avoiding  _Sasuke_  because of the killer intent that seemed to be leaking towards him either, nope~

Walking away, and replacing himself with a  _conveniently_  nearby rock behind the boy, he hummed and leaned right into the boy's ear.

"Ah, Naruto-kun~ you missed a spot there~~"

(Nor was he totally just trying to get away from that somehow judgmental stare.

(Nope, definitely not.)

"AGH—! _WHAT THE HELL, SENSEI?!"_ was the only response he got to 'surprising' the whiskered blonde —well, aside from the sound of some things either falling or crashing to the ground.

Ah…

Sweet, sweet music to his ears~~

* * *

**T** he day had started...pretty much the same as the previous few, honestly... 

And the week before that...

And thus the entirety of the month —one and a half, nearly two to be exact— since graduating that eventful day.

As much as she might want to say that all the socializing she had to do was annoying, the fact of the matter was…

She was  _getting used to it_.

She was getting used to being around the rest of her team, or having to 'explain' things to one, or the other, or _both_ , when she had to.

As it was, it was somewhat aggravating that the two seemed to be getting things faster than she was most of the time. Granted, they were older, and...well, aside from Naruto, all of them had much better chakra control from before, but that didn't mean it didn't still grate on her a bit.

Still, there were times that she found herself looking...almost  _fondly_  on the other two. It was…Well, it was  _definitely_  something she wasn't used to.

Outside of her uncle (who was also her guardian, and pretty much a single-father figure to her), Kohaku had not— She'd never—...

Tsukino Kohaku had always been a loner, apparently taking after her uncle in that regard.

What little she knew of her parents… Well, they had very clearly been a set of touchy feely and— and  _emotional_  people. Something that Kohaku wasn't used to dealing with, especially in herself.

Oh, she'd observed other people, using the time to 'people watch' for lack of a better term, doing her best to see underneath the underneath and all that, but without it being vocalized in those that she didn't know…

Well, it was just difficult overall to  _connect_.

The only reason she could with her uncle was because he'd practically raised her, after all. Even if some of it had been done herself once she'd started Academy and her uncle had deemed her old and mature enough to be able to take care of herself. Something that meant he could leave on much longer missions that could last _weeks_ instead of a few days or so at most. Especially when there wasn't anyone he could really trust to watch over her. (Apparently he was doing his utmost best to keep his old teammate away from her for whatever reason. Something about 'bad influences'...? She didn't really get it, but if Uncle said it...)

She couldn't deny that it had been...nice...however, that he'd taken the time to ensure he'd be there for her after graduation. Whether she passed or failed, she was sure he would have done the same. (The pleased twitch of surprise on his otherwise slate-like face had been absolutely genuine, after all.)

As it was, she had spent the time she had with him either relaxing or learning as much as she could that he was willing to teach her.

(And if she clung a little more, or was a bit more attached to him in general during the stay... Well, neither were very vocal people to begin with, and no one would say anything about it.)

Almost smiling when she caught sight of the 'present' he'd gotten for her graduation, she couldn't help but to remember when it'd happened.

* * *

She was tired. Having had to run around and deal with their new sensei as well as talking so much —not even mentioning the little outburst that had happened near the end of it all— had been beyond stressful. Even if she hadn't really realized it, so much as having been hit with it all at once when the adrenaline and everything else had calmed down.

Barely even thinking by the time she got to the three bedroom apartment that she shared with her uncle (the third being a guest room that mostly doubled for storage, especially since it wasn't as if either of them were social people), she mechanically removed the belt and almost obi-like cloth that she kept wrapped around her coat. Shedding that only moments later as she automatically folded and placed them on the counter of the little drawer-cabinet set that sat just inside the doorway.

It was only the sound of keys jingling as they shifted under her outer layer, as she muttered the usual "Tadaima" that was always muttered whenever she got home that something made her pause.

Turning back to check the little alcove that footwear was worn, shed, and kept, she nearly gave herself whiplash.

Heart skipping a little when she saw the by-now familiar house slippers that her uncle wore missing —as well as the larger set of shinobi footwear that sat beside to her own— the girl had had to refrain from dashing into the house.

Muted steps (ones that had been silent prior to her arrival —more out of habit than anything) approached her even as the girl's eyes sought the man that was like a brother and a father to her. Eyes bright and far more animated than one could have expected from the previously zombie-like child, she zeroed in on the man that had stepped out of his room with a yawn that was quickly covered up upon hearing the lock of the door shift.

A tiny smile on an otherwise inexpressive face and eyes just like hers, if sharper and under a darker head of hair. Longer and messier hair that had always seemed to have a single, neat braid kept swept behind a slightly pointed ear that was one of the possible inheritable traits that signified being of the bloodline they both shared. "Welcome back," he told her, voice lower and softer than most people could hear. Not for them, though —or any Inuzuka, if any of them were around, let alone paying attention of course.

Barely even twitching as a fluffy haired bundle all but rammed into him, Mikazuki Totsuka —Jounin and still-active member of AnBu— easily remained still and balanced as he caught his projectile niece in deceptively slender arms. A discrete application of chakra keeping them both from toppling over and softening the force of the blow as she rammed into him, childish hands tightening their hold as a small face buried itself into his waist.

A soft expression rarely worn outside present company appeared on a face many had claimed was like stone, the adult easily translated the muffled words said in response to his greeting. Debating for a moment whether to have the child clean herself up a bit first, or to simply enjoy the presence of his brother's child, he gave a light, stalling hum in response the words he'd translated.

Though it still made him uncomfortable being so… touchy-feely...for lack of a better expression, it was something he'd slowly become accustomed to over the years he'd shared with the child. Tactile and Verbal expression were all supposed to be important to the health and growth of a child's mentality and psyche, after all.

"Hard mission?" She'd asked, removing herself from him almost reluctantly. Though also not a very social person by nature, she couldn't help but to crave the tactile comfort that the man provided, taking in the comforting scent of  _family_  and shared blood that had taken such care of her —was taking care of her, even now.

Of course, she wasn't nearly as tactile as her parents had been (something her uncle could only be grateful for, honestly speaking). That didn't mean she wasn't tactile at all, however. Something that had probably been inherited or so ingrained in the few months she'd had with her actual parents that it clearly showed in instances like this, he mused.

Understandable, considering the circumstances.

Even when they'd been alive, it had been quite difficult to remove the elder Mikazuki from his person and it wasn't like the other had wasted any time in trying to 'get even closer' to his by far 'too stoic, serious, and oh-so precious little brother'. Miho-san, Kohaku's mother, had been the same. And when he'd had the (rather unfortunate and extremely dubious) luck of ending up on the same team as the always lovey-dovey duo after having had to split from the remainder of his own genin team back then, he'd cursed his luck. But now, well, _now_ he was grateful. Even if he might never admit to it.

It had just left so many more precious memories that he could —and would— eventually share with his niece, after all.

But that none of that was important right now. More importantly...

Shrugging as the two disentangled themselves, he ruffled the girl's hair, earning a slight pout of protest of the action though no complaint.

"It was fine," he told her, leading her further into the house with a light hand at her back. "You passed?"

Kohaku nodded, huffing as she remembered the day's events. "Uchiha, Uzumaki, and Hatake-san," she informed him, sure that he would understand without needing clarification over just why it bothered her.

"Ah," he nodded, aware of just what kind of person Hatake Kakashi was, "I'll be here for a few weeks unless Hokage-sama has any other need for me," he said after a moment, "Clean up and change? Got something for you," for graduating didn't even need to be said. "Dinner'll be heated once you're back," he promised, ruffling her hair again despite protest and pushing her towards the direction of her room so she could grab something clean to wear for after.

Seeing her perk up, eyes bright and eager as she nodded, he chuckled as she scampered off. Hopefully she'd like the bracers he'd picked up for her before a while back. They should fit or at least adjust so that she could wear them comfortably. And he was sure she'd enjoy learning a few more jutsu…

Perhaps it was time to move on to certain skills of the bloodline while he was still here, as well. She's need to know certain things eventually, after all.

Heading to the kitchen, he pulled out a few pots and pans to reheat the food he'd picked up before returning to the apartment, earlier on. It'd be better and healthier to reheat it all on the stove rather than just sticking it all in the microwave anyway. Not to mention that it'd barely even take a little bit more time, as well.

* * *

**K** akashi had to admit, he was —kind of, sort of,  _maybe a little_ — proud of his kids. (Yeah,  _his_  kids, got a problem with that?) He'd never thought he could get so attached to a trio of brats, and so quickly at that, but...looking back, he wasn't quite sure just what he'd even been doing  _before_  (or even when) he'd taken said 'brats' in.

Oh, he'd done his job. Gone on missions, trained a bit, trolled around a bi— ah, no, did he say trolled? He meant  _hung out_  with his, uh, acquaintances… (tentative friends?) a bit. 

_Definitely_  not trolled. Aha... _hahaha_ …(And that wasn't even including the fact that he so often visited the Memorial Stone. Something that he preferred not to think of when it wasn't 'time to visit', seeing as it tended to make things worse for himself…or his mental state, anyways.)

_Ahem_.

Anyways, he'd done quite a bit —and he'd admit, hadn't done quite a bit as well— but, well, watching  _his kids_  training together in the hours he spend doing other things or just…  _watching_  them (while reading his precious Icha Icha, of course, Jiraiya-sama was a  _genius_ ). He couldn't help but feel almost...well, he'd already said it, hadn't he?

And to think, he'd barely had to do much about it either! Despite her taciturn and unsociable nature —well, for the most part, anyway— Kohaku had become something of a catalyst for the other two. He had no doubt that they would have ended up wasting their time loitering about, waiting for his ever late appearance otherwise.

After all, while Naruto wasn't quite... _stupid,_  per say, he wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the set either.

Aside from his apparent genius at setting pranks ( _gods_ , those had been the days. While it'd been annoying when  _he'd_  been a participant of it, it had been  _amusing as all heck_  to watch all the other AnBu running around trying to catch a  _bright orange_  strip of a lad…), something that  _Kushina-san_  would have been proud of, no doubt (and nope, nope, _didn't hurt_ , he wasn't thinking about  _that_  or  _everything else_  about it). In fact, Minato-sensei would have likely been proud even as he pretended to be disapprovingly stern at the same time. Kakashi was certain of it... Ah, but he was digressing—

Anyways, while Naruto wasn't a total idiot, he wasn't very smart either (he really took after his mother more, if he were being honest, but he wasn't  _thinking_  about that, because it would  _hurt too much to remember, and—_  shhhhhh, nope. Not thinking about that. Quit it, Hatake). And there was no doubt he'd never have thought about it. Or, well, he wouldn't have until much,  _much_  later, anyways.

And while Sasuke was... _intelligent_...for a certain definition of the word, at least... He was just as broken (if not more so) from the betrayal of his brother, and, well, he tended to  _obsess_  over it...and his supposed revenge, but…

Yeah, he would have probably spent his time brooding and never realizing that he could be  _training_  in the extra few hours he (deliberately, mind you) gave them before deciding it was time to show up.

Still, they'd made remarkable progress so far.

Especially considering that Kakashi himself wasn't really  _doing_  anything to help on that front (aside from showing up just a little earlier or later depending on whether they were on a roll or were overworking themselves).

'Maybe I  _should_ start training them a little bit,' the man mused, watching from a nearby tree he'd perched himself in as his  _cute little genin_  finished up their second-to-last D-Rank for the day. Or, well, it  _would_  have been based on their usual 'schedule' if the son of the White Fang hadn't come to a decision as he shut his precious copy of  _Icha Icha Violence_ , only the latest of the Jiraiya-sama's  _Icha Icha_  series.

Besides, no doubt Naruto would be itching for a C-Rank soon, and while he was sure they were more than ready, the ex-AnBu captain had never been anything but cautious on his own missions —and he wasn't going to disrespect his cute little hardworking genin by not ensuring that they had the unspoken basics of shinobi skills taken care of, as well.

(In another world, Hatake Kakashi would have simply left his genin to their own devices. But here, with all the 'hard work' his kids were putting into their training and trying to get  _better —_ flashbacks of _'YOUTH!'_ aside _—_ the man couldn't help but to feel that he wanted to have at least taught them  _something_  of use in their time with him…

(And so the world continued to shift and change with every little difference that occured...or  _didn't_  happen, as the case may be…)

* * *

**T** hree genin stared at their so-called Sensei with surprised and dubious expressions.

"Wh—Wha _—_ _What did you say, Sensei—?!"_ And of course, the first to voice their disbelief was one Uzumaki Naruto, as said pervert-sensei sweat, the previous crescent-eyed smile disappearing into something a bit more… well,  _not_  a smile.

"Come now, Naruto, surely your hearing's not that bad~?" He mused, quickly smoothing the brows that had furrowed at the exclamation. "But if you really need me to say it again… We're going on a camping trip~!!" He exclaimed, just as cheerfully as he had before, though the cheer quickly faded to a twitch when the blonde burst into yelling again.

" _WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO OUR SENSEI?!_ " he demanded, pointing a finger at the man who just  _had_  to be an impostor! There was no way  _their_  Kakashi-sensei would just up and suddenly decide to do some kinda training exercise outside of all those stupid D-ranks! He was too lazy to do that!

On either side of him, the two darker haired members of the team could only agree as they watched a scene that looked like it'd been out of the legendary Twilight Zone almost warily. Slowly inching towards the most vibrantly haired member of their team, the two exchanged a look.

It...  _was_...an impostor, right? Definitely an impostor?

Or maybe he was sick, or something? It— It couldn't possibly, really be  _their_  Kakashi/Hatake-sensei…could it?

Standing before the three genin, Kakashi sweat at his team's antics.

"Hey, now… Just what is it that you think of your poor Sensei, huh?" Was it really that difficult to believe he'd want to take them on a training trip? He hadn't  _really_  come off as...well, whatever they had previously thought about him considering the disbelief they were showing _now_...had he?

The trio seemed to exchange a glance, looking unsure as the finger pointed in his direction began to waver.

"I, uh, well...uh," Naruto started, clearly still the most vocal of the trio (how they survived as a group for so long, Kakashi really wasn't sure, to be honest). "Well, I guess… you're kinda lazy…?" he started, not sure whether it was really safe to say such a thing.

"Useless," added Sasuke, eyes narrowed as he tried to pick out any discrepancies in the man. He'd already tried discreetly casting a  _Kai_  earlier and nothing had changed, so he doubted it was a genjutsu. Was this a trick, then?

"...Hatake-sensei is always late," Kohaku added, deciding to go for a fact rather than following her teammates words.

After all, if the man actually heard those words... Well, most people got upset when they thought they were being insulted or disparaged...right? (Or so she'd assumed from all that she'd seen, her teammate's interactions only cementing the idea in her mind.)

"Ah! And he's definitely a pervert!" Naruto exclaimed, nodding to himself as well as in agreement to everything that had always been said. "He's always reading those stupid perverted books!"

"..." Kakashi... Kakashi wasn't sure whether to be upset or insulted. _"Do you really think so little of me?!"_ He all but cried, a cloud of gloom and depression falling over his visage even as he tried to resist the urge to find some sort of corner or secluded spot to… do  _something_. He really wasn't sure, though from what he'd heard there was a ninja with a bloodline that tended to start sprouting mushroom or fungi or something when depressed, he absently mused.

Who was it...? Some earth or rock ninja or something…?

Ah, well, that wasn't important right now. More  _importantly—_

His kids' apparent impressions of him.

"Ah, and to think I thought you were such cute little genin," he all but sobbed, a weak genjutsu making it seem like tears were forming in his singular, visible eye. "Ahh~ah~ And here I was, planning to reward such cute and obedient little genin with a few tips and tricks (and jutsu). Maybe even a few  _skills_  (and jutsu) to go along with it by taking them on a training trip..." He fake-sobbed, creating a false sense of growing distance as he crouched and poked at the ground, using a stick he'd created through illusions. " _Ahhh, woe is me~_ such cruelty…such  _hate_ …" he continued, really laying it on thick as the trio watched, sneakily glancing back at them as he turned away to play the poor, depressed little man who had done no wrong and yet still was being wronged.

"...Maybe I should just let them take D-Ranks for the rest of their lives…?" He 'muttered', deciding to go in for the kill when the trio didn't really react much, aside from the strange, weirded out expressions two thirds of them wore, while Naruto, for once, just... _stared_. "Ah, maybe they'll appreciate me better if I give them more D-ranks!" he said a little louder, pretending to perk up —or possibly even have cracked— emitting a strange laugh along with a dark aura.

"H—Hey, hold on! W—We never said we _hated_ you!" Naruto exclaimed hastily. No way he wanted to risk even more D-ranks! They already  _were_  in D-rank hell even if he got to train with his...his... _friends_ …?

Even Sasuke nodded beside him, not wanting to be stuck with more D-ranks.

"...Liar," Kakashi pretended not to believe them, secretly having too much fun and trying too hard not to snicker as everything went to plan. 

_Ha, suckers!_ Honestly, he really  _did_  have such  _cute,_ cute _genin_. So naive. So  _easily manipulated by his tricks_. (It was something he should probably fix, but… ehhh, it was amusing, and it wasn't like they wouldn't be able to survive and still thrive even despite it, so why bother? Well, unless he absolutely had to, anyway…)

"N-No way! It's true, dattebayo! R-Right, Sasuke?" he sweat, nope-nope,  _hell_  to the no, no way was he doing any more D-ranks than he absolutely had to!

"...R— _right_ ," the last Uchiha practically had to choke out, clearly hating every moment of it as he forced an awkward laugh." You're... not  _really_ that... that  _useless_ ," he promised, feeling almost like puking even as he forced the words out of his mouth.

Oh god, he was seriously going to puke a little, this was  _pathetic, what the hell was wrong with him_ …

But, for the sake of learning more jutsu…

"R-right?!" Naruto laughed, "An— And you're really strong, right guys?! It'd be amazing if we could learn some— some  _real_  skills from a ninja like you!" The blonde exclaimed, laying it on as thick as he felt comfortable doing, "Right, Kohaku?" He asked, turning to their third member almost desperately.

Kohaku would help...right? Kohaku was nice?

"...He's still always late, though…" The girl muttered, expression blank though she tried not to be too obviously suspicious or dubious. And it's not like the other two had denied that the man was a pervert. Honestly, she would prefer training with her uncle than the famed son of the White Fang.

Nothing against him, of course, she just…

She wasn't really sure if the man could actually  _teach_ , considering he hadn't really done much of it in the month or so that they'd been him. Silence met her statement as the other three stared. Was she...was she  _serious?!_

_"Kohaku! Why did you say that?!"_ hissed Naruto, "We're trying to get him  _to_  train us, not give us _more D-ranks!"_ He reminded the startled brunette. Even Sasuke was looking a little… Well, that definitely wasn't as expression she hadn't seen before, even if there was also a similarly strange expression pasted on the face of their Sensei.

"...But, it's true?" she blinked, confused by this change, deciding to clarify since they didn't seem to understand what she was actually saying. "He is a skilled shinobi, true. But he's always late and we don't know if he can really, actually  _teach_  or make things worse…?"

Really, what was wrong with what she was saying…?

A groan met the logic response that she gave them, even as their teacher sweat. Yeah, okay, so it was true that he hadn't really  _taught_  them anything...except maybe teamwork (technically, speaking)...but, well, that had been an explanation and a half that he hadn't shared until  _after_  he'd passed them.

And yeah, sound logic, but that was… This was just…

He gave the girl an odd look —was she unaware of certain social cues and such? It wouldn't be surprising, but after the skills she'd shown so far (aside from the reluctance she'd shown in socializing in the very beginning and  _still_  showed on occasion)...

"I— Was that...wrong...?" she asked, clearly still confused as her teammates resisted the urge to bury their faces into their hands.

Well, whatever. Taking pity on the group, Kakashi spoke up again with a cough.

"Well, it is true that I haven't really taught you much, I suppose," he mused, genjutsu gone as the boys jumped, surprised that he'd 'gotten so close' again and so quickly as he stood right in front of them.

He did, of course, ignore the mutter of "You've never even  _taught us anything_ ," that followed as he continued on.

"Alright, how about we take this break for me to teach you some things then?" he smiled, eye once again curved into a cheerful crescent. "Even if you find that you don't like my teaching style, you'll at least have some valuable experience~ There are C-ranks where you'll have to hunt and catch your own food among other things —though I'm sure you all know the very basics, already~" He hummed, didn't genin have to go on that camping or survival trip at least once during their attendance? He mused.

"It'll be valuable information working as a  _team_  as well, since you'll have to split everything evenly and keep an eye on your surroundings, even as you take care of your client or whoever it is you have to escort in certain cases," he added. 

"At the very least we'll know if you're ready for a C-rank mission~" he finished, tacking on the actual bait he'd planned for. (Hook.)

At the word 'C-rank' all three of them paid full attention to him again. (Line.)

"R-really?! We'll be able to take a C-rank if we pass?" Naruto grinned, eyes bright as he tried not to cheer. A C-rank! No more dirty D-rank missions for them! When he got a nod in return he really  _did_  cheer, "Whoo-hoo! C-rank! C-rank!" He grinned.

Beside him, even Sasuke looked somewhat pleased, nodding in agreement. Being able to take C-ranks sooner would help him get stronger for sure. And it was true that knowing whether they'd be able to work together when they had to would be important...he supposed.

It definitely was  _not_ because he was absolutely sick and tired of the D-Rank  _Hell_ they'd been put through.

(And  _Sinker_.)

Kohaku, however, was still a little reluctant. Oh, she was fine with the logic, it all made sense after all. (None of them were aware that while Kakashi agreed that if they went they'd be  _able_  to take a C-rank, he hadn't actually said that they  _would_  take one.) But...she was still hesitant. Why? Well, there was really only one reason, if she were to be honest about it.

She… still wanted to train with her uncle while he was still here.

And if they took the trip, it'd be a minimum of a few days to a full week, which meant that much time missed if they did go. 

But she couldn't very well just ask to postpone it, after all, especially not when the others were so excited about it. It was selfish, anyway, and…

"Kohaku?" Startled, she blinked, backing up when she found herself staring directly into too-close blue eyes. "Hey, you're back! What were you thinking about? We've been calling you for  _ages_  and you haven't answered!" the blonde grinned.

"Uzumaki-kun—" "It's just  _Naruto,_  'tte bayo, geez!" " _Uzumaki-kun_ ," she continued, trying to get her words out as the blonde finally silenced himself. "My apologies for...zoning out," she said at last, quickly changing the subject to avoid any more questions. "When are we going?" she asked, hoping it would distract the blonde.

It did, as the blonde perked up, babbling a mile a minute as he tried to explain everything in his own words, all interjected by ramblings of excitement and everything before he was finally shut up by the team's raven-haired Uchiha.

"We're going to be going tomorrow," Sasuke told her, cutting across the blonde and ignoring the dirty look said jinchuuriki gave him. Looking to Kakashi, the dark-haired genin gave the man a look.

Apparently understanding, the man took over, a cheerful look taking over the calculative one he'd hidden under a mask of curiosity. "We'll be meeting tomorrow at noon at our usual place," he smiled, "Don't be late and make sure to bring full gear~ We'll be treating this like a mission, after all!" he finished, waving and disappearing in a puff of smoke once he did.

Whether it was to ignore the muttered responses or reactions that followed his statement wasn't clear, but it still didn't change the fact that it happened either way.

"Stupid Sensei, ' _don't be late',_  my ass!" The blonde muttered, even as the Uchiha gave a 'hn' and nod in agreement.

"Anyways, I gotta go find my stuff and pack so I'll see you guys tomorrow!" The blonde grinned, once again full of energy and wearing a bright sunray of a smile. "Can't wait for the trip, see ya!" He exclaimed, waving and running at the same time.

"Hn. See you there, Tsukino," on the other hand, was all that she got from the brooding avenger.

Nodding in response, and waving until the blonde was completely out of sight, Kohaku blinked, staring down at the hand that she'd raised without even thinking.

"...Tomorrow, huh…"

She wondered if her uncle would be upset about the fact that they wouldn't be able to do as planned for the next few days. Especially because the weekend would be hitting soon, and they'd planned to take the full day to do some training…

(Unbeknownst to her —for the moment, at least— the 'camping trip' would end up coinciding with an important AnBu-related mission he'd receive from the Hokage, causing the 'training day' to be postponed regardless.

(It was something that would both relieve and disappoint the young genin as they both ended up packing their things for their respective 'trips'.)


	6. Training Camp (Part I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Kakashi finally shows interest in actually 'training' the group, the genin are ecstatic —if a bit wary. Had they known what the week or so ahead would contain, however, they would have been far less willing and far more alarmed by the (clearly) not-so-sane man's plans. And so it begins... 
> 
> The Training Camp in the Forest of Hell. 
> 
> —Or Death, Death worked too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just letting you know, updates are going to get a _lot_ slower/more sporadic due to various reasons. With luck, I'll be able to do _something_ for this Verse sometime soon-ish, at least. Though... Whether or not it ends up being the next chapter or not...well, guess we'll just have to see.
> 
> WARNING for this chapter: Lots of cursing ahead. 
> 
> (Naruto and Sasuke are really, _really_ not amused...)

* * *

**D** aylight spread across the village, painting it in various hues as those creatures native to it stirred. A familiar cacophony of birdsong, chatter, and what little noise the up and moving shinobi of the village began to fill the air. It was a peaceful day, looking to feel just as fine as the light cover of wisping clouds that filtered the light and heat from the denizens of Konoha as the day progressed. The cold, nipping chills of the night disappearing, and —aside from the usual antics of a certain 'Green Beast of Konoha' amidst the other usual things that had long since dropped to the background to those familiar with it all— looked to be the beginnings of a perfect day for many of the inhabitants of the sprawling landscape of Konohagakure.

Or, well, it  _would_  have, if not for the terror-filled scream that rent through the otherwise peaceful air. The sound a combination of surprised and/or shocked screeches and yelling that seemed to echo through the village, giving pause to both civilian and ninja alike.

The source? Well, there was a  _reason_ that a certain forest of a certain 'training' area had been closed off and forbidden to so many of the ninja —let alone the civilians— of the Country of Fire.

Then again, Hatake Kakashi, last known Hatake and living member of the Yondaime's own genin students —as well as an ex-AnBu Captain under the designation of Dog (or Hound, if you were peculiar about that sort of thing), elite Jounin of Konoha, and son of the White Fang—...was not known for having a full set of marbles.

No matter how skilled the man was.

Of course, considering the fact that most of the 'elite' or 'top-tier' ninja nowadays seemed to have the tendency to have a few screws missing, let alone being as  _loose_  as they were.. _._

Well, it would likely explain why all four members of Team 7 could be found in the exceedingly dangerous confines of Training Ground 44 —also known as  _the Forest of Death—_  if anyone had actually cared to look. Two of four members screaming at the top of their lungs first thing in the morning of their second day of their Training Camp —or more accurately,  _Survival Training_.

(It honestly, really,  _probably_ , didn't help that Sharingan Kakashi had a tendency to get away with pretty much everything and anything he did nowadays either.)

* * *

" **H** oly crap. Holy crap _, holy crap—!!! What the fuck even_ is _that—?!"_ came the screeches of a blue-eyed, whiskered blonde as perspiration dripped rapidly from his adrenaline-wired body.

Despite his earlier scream of shocked terror —and make no mistake, the blonde was  _still terrified out of his fucking wits—_  the twelve years old genin continued to stare, with horrified, wide-eyed fascination, at the scene before him. Only barely, just managing to un-paralyze himself long enough to avoid the (" _What the hell!? THAT THING IS FUCKING_ HUGE!!") gigantic centipede that had somehow managed to find its way into the camp they'd set up the previous day.

"Idiot! Yelling'll only attract its attention, you stupid Dead Last—!!!" came the —somehow— low hiss of a yell, as an equally panicked Uchiha Sasuke dove out of the way of its lashing… end? That  _was_  the tail end, right?

 _Fuck, it was too hard to tell when the stupid thing was lashing about so violently_.

A cheerful hum interrupted the panic-filled tones of two out three of the genin. "Careful now, my cute little students~ Those things _are_ venomous, y'know~" called the cheerful voice of their  _gods-damned_ Sensei from one of the low-hanging tree branches above. "Even a baby like this can kill if the poison's not removed quickly enough~!" He added after a beat.

As the two genin continued to play a twisted life-or-death version of tag with the wildly flailing arthropod, Naruto screeched (again), diving out of the way just as the thing lunged for him, cursing when he realized that Sasuke had been _right,_ as it was mainly aiming for him. ( _Seriously?!_ ) But no, more importantly—

" _WHAT?!_  WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT THING'S _JUST A BABY?!"_

" _Idiot—!!_ Didn't I tell you to shut up?! That thing's following the sound of your voice!" snapped Sasuke, too busy dodging the stingers on the end of the ridiculously sized creature's body (he was pretty sure it could wrap around  _Kakashi_  a couple times. At minimum. Seeing how big it was). Even as he tried to get through  _its just as ridiculously hard exoskeleton._ Not quite really being of much help as he did his best to keep the dead-last from becoming poisoned or  _bug-chow_  even as he tried to avoid the same thing happening to himself.

(Seriously, _what the fuck?!_ )

Making sounds of protest as he spent his time —totally not on purpose, of course— distracting and dodging the thing ( _holy shit, that thing had to be, like, nine or ten full meters long or something!_ ), Naruto couldn't help but to continue, too busy  _dodging for his life_ , though at they very least not as loudly as he had before.

" _AND HOW THE HELL DO YOU EVEN KNOW IT'S JUST A BABY, ANYWAY?!_ " he all but screeched, demanding to know the seemingly trivial piece of information. Of course, if it really was just an infant version of its fellow arthropods, that also meant that there were  _even bigger versions_ of the thing scurrying around the forest they were in. Something that was, ya know,  _actually kind of important to know?!_

Still standing rather leisurely on the lowest branch of the equally ridiculous-in-height trees that surrounded them, their pervert of a sensei hummed. "Well, you see, kids~  _That_  Centipede only has fifteen pairs of legs," the man explained to the blonde and raven, tone —dare they even say it—  _educational_ as he continued. "Centipedes with fifteen pairs or less are still considered to be larvae of their species," he went on, expression and tone both cheerful and absolutely _genial_ as he continued to flip through the pages of the book that had earned him the label of  _pervert-sensei_. "Ah, but you might want to look out, though, seeing as the creatures of this forest  _do_  tend to, ah,  _mutate_...a little. So do try not to let that thing touch you, hmm~?" the man continued, a giggle accompanying the  _totally unhelpful words_  he spoke.

(That absolute bastard.)

" _What the hell do you even think we're doing?!_ " snapped Sasuke, clearly at the end of his rope as sweat beaded on his face. The fact that it was mutated was pretty obvious by this point, but the Uchiha was still trying to find a way to get through the hard shell of the venomous —and possibly even poisonous on top of that— arthropod as it screeched. The strange stingers on the end something that a  _normal_  centipede would never have had. (Gods-damn-it, that useless Sensei! _He should have known something was up when the man actually_ offered _to train them._ )

"And why the hell aren't you  _helping_   _us?!"_ he all but yelped (something he'd deny to his dying day — _especially_  the first that had matched the blonde's for pitch and resonance), ducking to avoid getting  _stabbed through the head_ by those _fucking stingers_.

More importantly, though…

_How the hell can Tsukino still be sleeping through this shit?!_

_A_ nd why the hell was she sleeping in a tree instead of the tents they'd brought anyway?! _What the fuck, Tsukino?!_

And here the Uchiha had thought the brunette would have been the  _normal_  member of their team (apparently not, though he probably should have figured this out a long time ago, anyway. Especially considering they'd had over a month to at least get a feel for each other).

Unaware of the ruckus (either too tired, or just completely deaf to it all), the aforementioned genin continued to sleep, curled up in a surprisingly comfortable niche between tree and branch. The only reason any of them even knew that the girl (presumed boy) was even there at all being the single limb that dangled over the edge of a leafy, vine-looped branch that Sasuke had somehow managed to catch sight of (Kakashi having already been aware that the strange child had been asleep in the loft of branches overhead from the beginning).

Later on, the two currently frantic genin would end up staring at the third of their group with disbelieving expressions when all she'd say in response to the demand to know  _why she had been sleeping in the tree while the other two had been fighting off a giant centipede_  would be that 'it had been comfortable'...

Seriously, the heck, Tsukino?!

* * *

 **D** espite the fact that he was known as a genius, Hatake Kakashi could be a little... _dim..._ at times.

Taking a group of (relatively) newly minted genin into a forest that even the most seasoned of veteran-ninja would typically avoid? Oh, totally acceptable. Tossing said genin into the deep end of said forest? Yup,  _also_  completely acceptable. Not warning said genin that previously mentioned 'Training Camp/Trip' would be taking place in a life-threatening forest of mutated flora and fauna…?

Well, it wasn't like they'd _always_ get such warnings while they were out and about on missions anyway. So really, wouldn't it be better to simply prepare them for the worst?

Especially considering the flora and fauna of any habitat could end up being used by any enemy to aid them in whatever quest they had. He was only doing what he thought was best for his cute little genin!

Granted, the man was _completely_ and  _absolutely confident_  that he'd be able to take care of his 'three little brat-lings' (even going so far as to put extra care in finding where to toss them for the first night and...'removing' anything that came too close until morning had come on day two), but it was still a bit much. Then again, he  _had_  been so kind as to allow them a day to get used to their surroundings and set up before allowing just _one_ of the mutated creatures that lived in the forest to find its way into their camp.

Their first opponent of the trip? Giant Centipedes, apparently.

Thankfully (for the boys, Kakashi was always prepared after all. And Kohaku having ended up deciding to set up _in_ a tree for whatever reason), the boys had managed to corral it a bit further away from their camp to avoid the destruction of any important implements they might actually end up needing for camping and/or while stuck out in the wilds. Especially since their Sensei had already warned them that they wouldn't be allowed to leave the forest for  _anything_  for the next two weeks or so.

Needless to say, his cute little students hadn't been pleased, especially upon finding out that a  _certain blonde knucklehead_  of the group had basically only ended up packing weapons, cup ramen, _more_ cup ramen, _even more cup ramen_... and a few others useless little knickknacks outside a single extra set of clothing and some underwear.

( _"You_   _don't need any of these things, Dobe!"_ "But I  _need my hippo hat!_  And— and Gama-chan'll get _lonely_ if I just leave him all alone! What if he gets stolen?!" "...Naruto,  _your wallet is not alive, gods-damn-it! It does_ not _have feelings!_ " _"You take that back!_ —Shh, Shhh, Gama-chan, he didn't really mean it, okay?! Sasuke's just a _jerk!"_ "..." "...I am surrounded by  _complete weirdos...!"_ "Sensei would like to take an exception to that fact~~" "...Like I said. _Complete. Weirdos._ ")

Either way, this would only be the  _first_  of many tests —er, trials— they would go through.

Thankfully the centipede was young enough that Kakashi was absolutely certain they'd be able to survive...long enough to get them to the shinobi hospital even if they  _did_  get poisoned, anyway…

Although, perhaps he should give them another hint? He was pretty sure they should've been able to beat the thing already with their skill-sets anyways… That aside, though,  _should_  he wake Kohaku up? Maybe send a bunshin over to wake her? He mused, opening his mouth to call out even as he thought about the strangely amusing situation.

(He didn't even bothering to look away from the book he was reading —or rather,  _re_ -reading— since it looked as if they had things well enough in hand.)

Separating the team at times —supervised by a bunshin at the very least, of course— would probably be a good idea to ensure they could survive if they ever ended up getting split up in a dangerous situation. (And no, that was  _totally not a reference to you-know-what about you-know-when._  Because he didn't — _wasn't_ , that is. He wasn't thinking about you- _did-not_ -know-what about you- _did-not_ -know-when. That was just... _not a thing that was being thought about right now. Okay?_ ) That decided, he made no move to wake the kunoichi of the team up —not like that arthropod would be able to reach her up there anyhow.

(That and sleeping in trees was also actually a smart move when you had no idea what was creeping along the forest floor. Which was really the only reason he decided to let it go, seeing as she was the only one that seemed to have realized this fact, regardless of whether it was on purpose or not —a reward for using her head to think, if you will. Of course, it wouldn't be much help later on, when they changed location to around where the few _not-so-little,_ _tree-climbing beasties_ were... but that was okay. They were here to  _learn_ after all~)

Only vaguely keeping track as the boys continued to dodge, Kakashi finally decided that they probably really did need that hint after all. (Which was somewhat disappointing. Did  _neither_ of them realize that poison was —well,  _usually,_ anyways _—_  a flammable substance?)

As amusing as it was watching his two  _cute little students_  freaking out (especially the typically oh-so-stoic and proud Uchiha), they really should be getting a move on soon.

Lots to do and lots to learn, after all.

"Y'know, I've been told that centipedes can be quite flammable under the right conditions~" He mused aloud, tone dry as dust as he finally lifted his single uncovered eye completely from the book in his hand.

* * *

 **B** y the time Kohaku actually wake up, the two boys had finally managed to defeat the first of the many, _many_ giant creatures they'd be meeting in the forest of hell that their sensei had all but trapped them in. Either until the full week they'd decided on was up or they got injured critically enough to need _hospice_ care. Waking up to the scent of charred arthropod —and catching sight of the smoking carcass that had been _carefully_ moved as far from their temporary campsite as the boys could to avoid tempting any of the other creatures that lived in the forest to invade their camp— she almost paused as she jumped down from the nest she'd made.

("...Y'know...I've heard that giant centipede can be quite tasty, if you know how to cook it right…" "Awww,  _ewww_ , Sensei! Gross!" "That's _disgusting._ ")

Instead, she simply moved on, making her way towards the cheerfully crackling fire that one of the other two genin were poking at, golden eyes scrunching a bit as her brows furrowed, wondering if she actually wanted to know.

Also, because the scent of charred centipede. The thing was kind of rank, and the strength of the smell really wasn't helping the preteen's more sensitive nose. (No doubt it would be even stronger to their Sensei's more canid-like nose. As it was, she was already kind of tempted to find the mask she'd packed into her bag as well, just in case.)

"Kohaku! You're awake, finally!" having caught sight of the brunette, Naruto perked up, greeting the girl far more energetically than he'd been acting prior to doing so. "You missed a fight," he told her, apparently not at all bothered that his friend had missed the entire skirmish, "Me'n Sasuke managed to beat it, though! But then Kakashi-sensei sent us to find some stuff to eat, since it's better not to 'deplete our stock if we don't have to' or something," he shrugged. "I dunno if we should actually  _eat_  any of it though, since  _apparently,_ this forest's _all creepy and mutated and shit!_ " he exclaimed, purposefully aiming baby blues in a glare shot in the direction of the ever irritating casual figure of their Jounin-sensei.

"Maa, maa… I have full confidence that you'll be able to survive our little trip in the woods, Naruto-kun~~"

Only to get a disbelieving look in return for his encouragement. The man just sighed, a saddened and disappointed expression on what was visible of his face. "You're all so quick to judge," the eldest of the team complained, "I wouldn't have brought you out here if I didn't think you could handle it, y'know. Don't you trust your sensei?" he asked, adopting a wounded expression as he finally,  _finally_  looked away from his book.

" _No_." Came the surprising response (echoed by Naruto's own " _Hell no!_ ") as Sasuke walked past him, arms full of kindling, even as he shot the man a dark look —before shoving his blonde teammate out of the way so he could add more wood to the fire, poking at the fire with the very stick he confiscated from the protesting blonde.

"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed, only to sulk when the Uchiha ignored him as well. Settling on the other side next to the brunette that had seated herself not too far from his original seat, he shot an insulted glare at his fellow genin before answering the more important question. "And definitely not! Not after you tricked us again!" he scowled, crossing his arms and unfazed when the Jounin ended up pouting behind his mask (though, whether he could even  _tell_  was another question altogether).

"Hmph... " finally finding the state of their campfire acceptable, the raven turned his attention to the kunoichi of the team while the other two males bickered, one jokingly while the other bared his teeth in actual irritation. "And where were  _you_  when that thing attacked?" he scowled, jabbing the stick he was holding in the direction of the centipede corpse somewhere behind him.

When all he got was a shrug, however, the Uchiha's expression darkened. "Why the hell were you up there, anyways?" He muttered, poking more viciously at the fire for something to do. A pot of  _something_  (smelled kind of like stew, to be honest) was already bubbling away on the other side. Campfire cooking tins with servings of rice —that had likely been paired with something on the side— for all four members of the team broiled away on either side of the camping pot.

Shrugging again, the brunette spoke up before the other could do more than scowl in response to her repeated action. " 's comfy," ended up being all she said however, the argument on the other side of the fire dying out as all three males turned to stare at the kunoichi.

Blinking in response to the stares, she tilted her head as Sasuke repeated her words in disbelief. "It's…  _comfortable._ " Staring somewhat blankly and almost astounded by the response, he ran the reasoning through his head. Sleeping on tough bark raised high enough to break even a  _ninja's_  neck if they managed to fall off...was  _comfortable_  to the other genin.

"Yes," the brunette nodded, mistakenly believing that the others now understood as she allowed her attention to wander. "It's very comfortable if you can find the right angle," she continued, getting up to poke at the food. It had probably helped that she'd stayed up for most of the night keeping watch, though. Even if Hatake-sensei had said he would. Not like she had really been able to sleep in such an unfamiliar place, considering that —until now— she'd only ever slept in her own home or around the training grounds she and her uncle frequented together (and occasionally at the Academy).

Of course, the Academy 'camping trip' had been an exception, but that had only been one night, and... she  _had_  ended up staying up anyway, so technically she hadn't then either.

Still, finding such a comfortable branch had been quite the pleasant surprise considering she'd only really climbed up to get a better view of their surroundings to begin with. It had been a while since she'd actually slept in a tree though, seeing as her Uncle had politely _requested_ that she not.

At least, not after she'd nearly fallen out of one trying to roll over after forgetting where she was. Of course, that had been back when she was much younger than she'd been now (he'd caught her, of course, but it had still been a near thing. The man had almost had a _heart attack_ due to the entire situation, to be honest). Come to think of it… that was probably around when her uncle had decided to start teaching her how to tree-walk —even if it could've been considered a bit early.

Unaware of their thoughts, Kohaku ended up quietly taking over cooking duty, since the majority of it was still only half cooked, even as the other three continued to watch her with various expression of incredulity. Humming when it was finally done, she looked up from her work  —only to blink when she found their eyes (all of their, well, working eyes) still on her.

"...Food is done…?" She offered, somewhat confused by the stares. Had they really been so hungry to simply stare when they had nothing else to do….?

(If her team had been able to hear her thoughts, they might have faulted.)

* * *

" **N** ow then!" As the trio of genin continued to eat their breakfast, not being quite as versed in the art of speedy consumption as their Sensei apparently was, they watched their suspiciously cheerful teacher as he started talking, clapping his hands together to catch their attention. "Once you all are done with breakfast, we'll be doing a little...training. After that, we're going to be moving along with our little itinerary so you all can get used to putting up and breaking camp quickly and efficiently.

"Of course, that's not including ensuring that all signs of our having been there are properly erased," he mused, studying the expressions of his little audience.

"Uhhh… What?" Putting his stomach on pause for a moment, the blonde of the team scrunched his face, placing the spoon back down. He… hadn't understood half of what his teacher had been saying.

Beside him, Sasuke almost rolled his eyes.

"That means we're either going to be practicing camp set up and take down or we're going to be changing locations a lot," he drawled, tacking an unspoken 'idiot' to the end of his sentence that the blonde beside him  _somehow_  (by some miracle, considering how dense he could be) understood.

" _Teme—_ _!!_ " Naruto exclaimed, almost upending his bowl if not for the fact that their seating arrangement ensured he couldn't get up. Not without knocking into their sensei or tripping into the fire, anyway. (He wasn't even going to  _contemplate_  the idea of ending up on top of Sasuke...again... Once was already one _too many_ , okay!) Before he could start anything, however, a large, finger-less gloved hand found itself on top of his head, unbalancing the blonde a bit and giving him pause.

"Now, now, let's not get to fighting just yet, hm~?" A tone of warning in the otherwise cheerful words, Kakashi smiled, "In any case, once you're done we'll be stocking up on some supplies while we're here.

"Oh, and just to let you know," he mused, since they  _apparently_  wanted some kind of warning ahead of time, "The longer it takes, the longer we'll end up staying. And past today, every extra day it takes to get our objectives done is another extra day tacked on to the designated week we'll be staying~!"

Silence met his proclamation.

Exchanging a look that the man ignored, the trio decided to just finish their food and get on with it all as quickly as possible. Time was wasting, after all. (And considering the size of the  _Centipede_  they'd come across, the boys really didn't want to have to deal with any beasts that just might have grown to be even  _larger_  than that...)

Hopefully they wouldn't run into too many of the creatures that lived here, though.

* * *

 **U** nfortunately for the genin, it seemed that Giant centipedes wouldn't be the last of their worries at all.

After breakfast, Kakashi finally began to teach them a few things, sending them out to hunt, forage, and find water (though it apparently didn't trouble him that such a thing would be a bit more difficult to find considering their distance from the nearest waterway). There would be quite a few close calls and near misses as the genin were caught unawares or ambushed, forced to fight either one-on-one or two- and sometimes even three-on-more depending on the situation.

The last had been especially annoying, since they'd managed to,  _somehow_ , find themselves in a nest full of giant centipedes.

On the upside, they were less likely to come in contact into any more of those until the things managed to re-populate themselves again.

Still, that had been troubling. More in the way that they'd had to try more than just 'set the damn things on fire'. They'd had to think about a way to do so without trapping _themselves_ in what would amount to a pit of flames that would very likely have killed  _them_  as well. (Thankfully,  _someone_  had brought a nice and sturdy rope or they would've been stuck. Especially since the dirt that made up the sides of the thing had been too loose to be able to properly employ what they'd learned from tree walking to get out just yet.)

Needless to say, by the time they got back to the camp, none of the genin were pleased, and all of them were worse for wear. (Though, hey, on the bright side, at least they probably wouldn't have to worry about the Giant Centipedes anymore… well, while they were still stuck there, at any rate…or however long it took for the local giant bug population to rise up to its previous numbers. But again, hopefully that wouldn't be anytime soon.)

* * *

 " **W** elcome back, you all~~ So, how was it?"

"I... _really_ hate you right now, Sensei," was the first thing said in response to his question as Naruto tromped into view of the fire by which Kakashi sat, having done absolutely nothing (other than discreetly sending a bunshin or two after them to keep an eye on the three kids, of course) after announcing that he would be acting as a client. The fact that Kakashi was also a jounin (and thus could take care of himself) was probably the only reason the kids were allowed to leave him at the site of their camp without another guard. Of course, in an  _actual_  escort situation, one of them would always have to be with the client. For now, though, Kakashi would be taking full advantage of the fact that there wasn't actually a client around to train his kids. Even if it wasn't quite in the conventional way that they'd probably been hoping, or expecting.

"Really~?" He hummed, flipping through his copy of  _Icha Icha Paradise_  (which, for once, wasn't actually the book that its cover suggested) nonchalantly, "Even if I was going to teach you a new jutsu, today?"

Despite two of the three looking wary (or as wary as they could, considering that one was typically blank faced as opposed to the serious one the Uchiha of the team wore), even as per usual a certain idiot savant fell for it.

" _What?!_  Really?! What kind? What kind?!" Judging by his fellow genin's expressions, however, it was clear that they hadn't been expecting the other to be so easily distracted (even if it was by the idea of 'shiny new jutsu, gimme-gimme!') if the looks of disbelief on their faces was any indication.

(Oh dear, Kakashi wasn't sure his inner troll could take it. At least, not without messing with them a bit, that was… Probably not a good idea, but then, Kakashi wasn't exactly a bastion of intellect no matter how much of a genius he was purported to be.)

"Well… I don't know if I  _should_ ," he mused, "I mean, if you're all going to be so suspicious about every little thing~" He hummed, mentally marking his place as he half-hid his face (masked though it was) behind it.

"Aw, c'mon~! Please, please, pretty please…?" Pleading blue puppy-eyes greeted the man's single visible eye as he continued to hem and haw, a slow smile building even as the others voiced their skepticism.

"Don't be stupid, Dobe. It's obviously a trap. He's probably just going to trick us again," grunted the last Uchiha, arms crossed as he shot a glare at the silver-haired retired AnBu that was, quite unfortunately, their sensei. Beside him, a head of dark tawny hair nodded. He  _had_  tricked them into thinking this would be a purely educational training trip, after all. (Though, it  _was_  technically true...it was just… educational in the way that they'd be learning to survive…? Or rather, not in the way they'd been either hoping, expecting, or planning.)

"O-oh…yeah, I… I guess that's true," agreed the blonde, faltering when he realized he'd almost been played again.

"Hm, too bad... And here I was even going to throw in a couple of new and useful jutsu for wilderness survival as well," the man hummed, shrugging and pretending to turn his attention back to the book in hand.

This time, all three perked up, however reluctantly. Jutsu? As in,  _actual_  jutsu? He was really going to show them how to use new  _jutsu_ …? (And he'd even said it would be  _useful_ … which was probably the only reason Kohaku found herself zero-ing in on the man, gaze concentrated like a predator boring into prey. Still, it probably wasn't so surprising that her only response would be to increase the amount her gaze bore into him, quiet as she was.)

"Really?! Teach me! Please teach me, Sensei!" the team's blonde exclaimed. But even as Sasuke looked on with reluctant interest, the kunoichi of the team simply continued to stare. Though she did take a moment to pause and glance between her other teammates as they spoke, logic apparently returning as she cast a dubious look at her sensei.

Would it really be as useful as he said it would be? At this point, she wouldn't put it past him to twist his words, especially since he'd never specified for  _what_  the use would be (wilderness survival aside). Seeming to agree, the other stone-faced genin spoke up.

"...Hn. If you really are, then  _prove_  it," insisted the irritable Uchiha, arms crossed and finger tapping against his arm as he glared. Kohaku nodded in agreement as they gave further thought to his words.

"Well, I suppose I could show you a few tricks~" He mused, sticking his hands (including the book still in one of them) into his pockets. "What do you all know about Stealth, Tracking, and Survival jutsu…?" he started, eye crinkling again as all three perked up, watching, as he rocked back a bit. (Even if it brought back certain...memories...to the fore of his mind, despite having already decided how to go about training the kids. But no, Kakashi wouldn't let himself think about it, he was on duty right now. And he would do his duty before letting himself think about the shards of the mirror that reflected his broken self.)

(He could break down in front of the Memorial Stone or in the secure confines of his own mind at a later date. Right now, he had genin to teach…)

Grinning, the expression hidden behind the mask the trio had yet to learn to get a proper read from, he motioned for the genin to settle down around the fire they'd already begun to gravitate towards…

* * *

 " _Remember, Kakashi… The most important jutsu aren't just flashy or extensive chakra-using ones, they're the ones that will keep you_ alive,"  _Minato told a much younger Hatake, stressing the fact that his father had once told him, even if it was in a different situation. "Today, I'm going to show you a few skills and tricks that'll make_ surviving  _easier. After all, a dead shinobi is one that can no longer do their duty to the village…_

" _And one that'll only cause their loved ones and those that care for them to suffer when they're left behind. Got it?"_

" _Hai, Sensei…" the boy answered monotonously, clearly not quite believing it, if at all, just yet._

_Sighing almost sadly the blonde ruffled the silver-haired child's hair, ignoring the resulting protests._

" _I promise you'll understand exactly what I mean one day, Kakashi," the man told him. Hopefully the time wouldn't come too soon, however. The death of the White Fang had all but shattered his son, he knew. But hopefully,_ hopefully _, being on a team with others his age would make the child open up more… which was why he planned to pick up another two genin to round off their team once the newest batch of kids finally graduated. He was certain that being around other kids (enforced as it would be, seeing as they'd be teammates from then on) could only be good for the boy._

_Grinning at the masked child, the future Yondaime stretched. "Well then, Kakashi. Why don't we get some of that training done? We've got quite a bit of time before we get stuck with two more genin on our team," months, really. "so what say you we get started?" He asked, sending a sly smile the boy's way._

_Clearly perking up, a determined expression decorating his masked face, the genin followed after the man he admired._

" _Hai, Sensei...!"_

* * *

 **T** he trio of genin were tired. After learning and practicing the jutsu he'd taught them, the Jounin had sent them all back out into the wilderness to do more 'stockpiling'. It hadn't helped that they'd used up so much of their chakra working on the skills needed before being sent off. Lucky for them, none had hit the level of chakra exhaustion that could be life threatening —or even require a trip to the Hospital. But that didn't mean they weren't all cursing their Sensei (within the safety and confines of their own minds, of course) for sending them out again for more foodstuff and supplies to augment what they already had.

At least it was getting easier since they knew what to look for, now. Unfortunately, even if they managed to get enough to satisfy their teacher, they still wouldn't be allowed to get a full night's sleep. Oh, no. Despite setting traps and such as directed, there were still things that ended up getting a _little too close_ to their campsite. Meaning they'd periodically have to wake each other up to take care of things before resetting what traps they could —or at least take turns depending on whether things went well or not (more than one of them had had to get up every now and then to deal with something too big or strong for just one genin to take care of).

Needless to say, it would be a while before they learned to actually sleep  _lightly_. But until then, random nightly visits from the denizens of the place they'd come to dub 'the Forest of Hell' —not knowing of its other, official moniker— looked to be a very unfortunate, and rather frequent event.

Sasuke was not happy. Even if they were told that they'd gathered enough to satisfy the Jounin for the moment, it only meant just that.  _For the moment_. The vengeance-happy Uchiha was not pleased, especially adding in the irritation at his surroundings and chakra exhaustion on top of his already tired countenance. And if he was a little more... _vicious_...in his attacks against the creatures that somehow ended up getting past their first line of defenses, well, that was just as well.

Better he take it out on an actual enemy than an ally, after all.

(That still didn't mean he was very happy about it, of course. A sleep deprived Uchiha could be a vindictive and cruel bitch of an Uchiha...not that that was any different from the norm, to be honest… Just the fact that he was a little more  _obviously_  so.)

After all, unlike the ever stone-faced Tsukino, the Uchiha wasn't quite able to keep as tight a control on his expressions or emotions as the stress built up. Nor was he as badly off as Naruto had been (and still was, if we're being honest, here), to the point that staying up a couple of days at a time due to certain extenuating situations wouldn't hurt him too badly. Not even counting the fact that all three genin were as close to chakra exhaustion as the only adult figure of their group could safely assess.

(Needless to say, Sasuke would be the first to crack in the 'sleep deprivation' part of the training regiment.)

* * *

 **K** akashi was almost impressed,  _almost_. Aside from Sasuke, the other two seemed to be doing relatively well. Despite the chakra exhaustion, Kohaku seemed to be doing fine with the sleep deprivation portion of the training. Naruto, well, finding a way to get the blonde to expend all of his chakra reserves was nigh on impossible (for the moment, at least), so he wasn't really surprised that he was doing so well out of the three genin.

(He was still determined to get there before the end of their week in Training Ground 44, though. And they  _would_  get to that point...eventually.)

Still, there was more to the training than just surviving and functioning under a lack of sleep.

(There were layers upon layers to the training, after all. And if his cute —albeit currently exhausted— little genin couldn't see underneath that underneath? Well, they were still young, but that wouldn't mean Kakashi would be spoon-feeding them any of the answers… No, if they couldn't figure it out themselves, he certainly wouldn't tell them.)

As far as the man was concerned the training was going splendidly —slight loss of trust from his unit aside. But, well, one day they'd realize that it was all for their own good.

Perhaps…

One day.

(Hopefully sooner rather than later, though…)

Review on whatever the Academy Training Camp taught them, new jutsu, chakra core/limit expansion —through exhaustion of their reserves, of course— finding out  _where_  said chakra limits were at, sleep deprivation, and the ability to live off the land even in foreign and possibly dangerous surroundings…all of these things, of which were only just a fraction of what he was planning to have his kids learn by the end of this trip, were important for any shinobi to know, after all.

Still, that didn't mean it was going  _perfectly_. As said, the lack of trust was actually getting a little hurtful (no matter how much the man probably deserved it, something that many could attest to. The troll). Oh, well. That was just life. It was never perfect, and it seemed to love throwing curve-balls, so why bother just waiting? Especially when one could train for the worst and hope for the best? At worst, that 'worst' they were training for would actually happen and they'd have to utilize all those skills. At best, it wouldn't —and hey! They'd still be better off. Why? Well, because they would be better equipped with the skills  _to_  take care of anything that might happen,  _obviously_.

(Being in AnBu for so long may or may not have completely skewed certain aspects of the man who'd worn the mask of Dog, if we're going to be completely honest here. But again, that was probably to be expected, all considered.)

...Even if they had already known some of them —or, well, certain 'camping jutsu', anyway. That had been such a disappointment, to be honest. Although, the fact that, Academy Standard aside, Kohaku and Sasuke had both known different variants of their own was probably a good thing.

Oh, well, they knew more now! Which, clearly, could only be good! 

(So maybe he wasn't actually that disappointed after all.)

He'd been hoping to be able to save one or two of those jutsu for later, though. Still, better than them not knowing, he supposed. And it wasn't like the others wouldn't have learned of them...even if Naruto was probably going to have to play a bit of catch up in regards to those jutsu (his reserves were too high and control too low, for the most part). Not surprising, though.

Unlike Naruto, Sasuke had had a family, or a clan, rather, among whom certain members had been AnBu, and others simply skilled ninja and jounin. He'd probably learned a few things before the massacre… not even including all those scrolls they probably still had even after the fact.

Kohaku, on the other hand…

Huh, wasn't her only living guardian in AnBu, still? If he remembered correctly, he'd had to temporarily step out for a couple of years to take care of his kid —er, niece. That...would probably explain a bit, now that he thought about it.

(He should really remember to test them all on what jutsu they all knew at some point...)

(Eventually…)

(If he remembered...

(That was always a point nowadays, too. Kakashi always seemed to be  _so_ easily distracted nowadays…)

(Well, okay, not really, but  _shhhh_ , no one else knew that yet, did they? And Kakashi was nothing if not practical in that regard. Anything that could give him a good upper hand...)

Oh well, he was confident (or at least pretty sure) they'd be able to survive the next day, too, at least. Especially since he knew just the  _perfect_  place to do some Chakra Control and Water Jutsu exercises...

(The kids were doomed.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I was kind of hoping to be able to get a little farther than just day two (or technically one, considering Kakashi was apparently feeling 'nice' enough to give his kids a deserved break for the first day or so, as well as to let them get used to the new environment). 
> 
> Unfortunately, I couldn't really cut it any later without it being either extremely awkward —or past the word count limit I prefer to keep per chapter. (I have since learned from attempting to post 10k+ chapters, okay? Those things are such a pain to get through for edits/updates/etc.) 
> 
> Which, of course, means the whole Training Camp thing will probably end up being extended...especially because I only got through so much in one chapter. (Whether that's a good or bad thing is up to you all, I guess.)
> 
> Then again, I really didn't want to have to cut out a lot. (I've had to scrap quite a bit and rewrite quite a bit as well to make things work as it is.) There's a lot that I'd like to do with this, and I don't want to just squish everything in just to get it all over with. I do have almost the entirety of it planned, though, in case anyone wants to know. 
> 
> Any suggestions and/or requests are allowed (and very much appreciated) if there's anything anyone would particularly like to see, however. 
> 
> Unfortunately, it's likely I'll end up having to cut certain segments out just to make it all work, so any particular things that you all might like to see will be taken into account (though I do have the entirety of the trip already planned, as said). Any ideas that I end up borrowing and/or using will be mentioned as we get to them (though hopefully that won't end up spoiling everything, haha...). 
> 
> Incidentally, I do have two possible Interludes/Omake ideas that might happen during/after the training camp, so there's that to look forward to at least!
> 
> Anyways, before I end up going on another tangent or rambling spree (and thus spoil absolutely everything about this little arc, as it's looking to be), I'd like to once again make note that I do _not_ own NARUTO, and that this story is self-beta'd (which, really, is as good as being unbeta'd). 
> 
> Questions and Corrections are always welcome.
> 
> (By the way, out of curiosity —do you guys prefer shorter/more frequent updates or longer/less frequent updates for those invested in this story...?)


	7. Training Camp (Part II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's only been a few days since they'd arrived in the Forest of Death and already they've had to deal with a little too much for comfort. Giant Centipedes, Sleep Deprivation, and the subtle exhaustion left by all their 'training' and chakra exhaustion... It might only be the beginning of their so-called trip, but...
> 
> It couldn't _possibly_ get any worse, could it?!
> 
> —Maybe they'd spoken too soon, though. Had they known exactly what their experience would entail, Team 7 would never have agreed to their insane Jounin-sensei's crazy scheme!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Finally_ , the newest chapter is out!
> 
> Just a few important notes before we start the show, though.
> 
> From here out I'll be moving all the various notes and such to the End, standard Disclaimers, Warnings, and Important Notices (mostly just things that you might need to know _before_ reading the chapter) aside. Basically, anything that can wait til the end will be pushed to the End Notes to avoid clutter.
> 
> Anyways, as always, I don't own Naruto. Or it's Sequel. Or any of the Gaidens that go along with it. That all belongs to Kishimoto-sensei. All I get is a little credit for creativity, effort, and the artistic license to write the characters in said world as I explore some ideas.
> 
> And as is par for the course, I still don't have an official Beta, so if there are any mistakes, I apologize. I do my best, but I always find myself needing to edit and fix things up anyways even after it's posted.
> 
> Also, I've gone through prior chapters and fixed a few issues/inconsistencies. I'll be implementing a new Break to make things a little easier for myself, but that aside, there's not much that needs saying right now.
> 
> In any case, enjoy!

—    ☙ ○ ❧    —

Morning came almost too soon for three stressed and exhausted genin. Each of the trio of twelve-year-old's had since been drenched in water, algae, dirt, and/or some combination of the three.

It had been several days since they’d been tossed into the forest ("More like a jungle," Naruto complained after a while, earning no dispute from his fellow genin), and the trio now found themselves by the edge of a clearing at a lake’s edge. The clear scuffs and claw marks here and there signaled that several different species of varying sizes used the area as a drinking hole. Signs of struggle that Kakashi had them go over and dissect or try to guess at in as much detail as possible littered the area.

It would have been concerning to someone with more sanity than the Jounin, who already had skewed ideas about ‘safety’ and ‘safe training’ to begin with, but then, this was the same man that had tossed aforementioned genin into the most dangerous 'training' area in the entirety of their country. Let alone tossing them —quite literally— into the deep end of it, once he apparently deigned to ‘teach’ them water-walking upon their arrival at the clearing (and with only vague mentions of other ‘things’ to take note of or keep in mind).

Thankfully, for the trio at least, he’d at least had the courtesy to wait until after lunch. A special consideration, seeing just how tired they’d been simply getting to that point.

Then again, that would only be a small mercy compared to the horrors they’d be facing soon.

And of course, Kakashi hadn’t bothered to warn them about the mutated —and mostly carnivorous— creatures and plant-life that dwelled within its deceptively still waters.

Not that it made any difference considering their surroundings. Especially considering what creatures they had already seen and/or encountered prior to arriving at the place. And that wasn’t even counting the fact he was having them learn water-walking in such a dangerous area, or that he hadn’t bothered to do more than imply that it was ‘a good thing they all at least knew how to float’ rather than ensuring they at least knew how to swim first.

(Then again, this was Hatake Kakashi, we’re talking about. The same man who had deemed the aforenamed  _Forest of Death_ a perfectly good training place for a nearly fresh out of the academy genin team…)

Needless to say, the genin hadn’t been very happy about it. Nor had they been very impressed —though considering what they knew of their supposed Sensei so far… Well, it really couldn’t be said that it was truly so unexpected in the end.

But again, that was only a small mercy compared to the horrors they’d soon be facing.

—    ☙ ✧ ❧    —

“Alright, gather 'round, you three. We’ll be heading out as soon as you finish breaking camp~!” the last Hatake called to his students, countenance both lax yet cheery at the same time.

“What? But you just had us unpack everything again!” the ever-boisterous Naruto complained. Still, even he was starting to seem a little less chipper than usual. (Just because he _could_ go on with less sleep didn’t mean he liked to, or that it wasn’t still detrimental to his health, after all.) And it was true, the man had had them empty out all their stores to double and triple check that they had everything they would need (not to mention, it’d allow the man an easier time to mentally figure out how to spread the weight as evenly as possible between his genin). In the event that one of them ‘got separated’ it wouldn’t do for said person to be bearing either something important for all their survivals, or that would be useless by itself, after all.

(Oh, no. If they were going to end up separated, they would at least have the bare minimal they’d _need_ to survive at the very least. Which, of course, was not including the bunshin that he’d be assigning to each of his cute little genin on top. But those would take action during actual emergency situations only.)

Ignoring the protest, the jounin hummed. “Well then, you’d best get packing, shouldn’t you? I warn you, though~ If everything’s not packed correctly, you’ll have to do it _all_ over again~!” He all but sang, ignoring the groans that met his announcement.

“Are you at least going to tell us _how?"_  The last Uchiha scowled, glaring blearily at their Sensei.

Even if he did end up saying no, there was a chance that he’d say yes —and maybe even outright tell them (though it was doubtful...but then, Sasuke was just a little lacking in the rational thought department at the moment. Unlike other kids, he'd always been a ‘good little boy’ and had gone to sleep on time after his daily self-training regimen plus dinner for himself when he wasn’t being plagued by sleeplessness or bad dreams... Which, really, probably explained why he usually trained more right before bed, to be honest. It was just so much easier to sleep after tiring himself out as much as he physically could...and not entirely because he’d be stuck dreaming of certain _memories_ , either).

“Hmmmmm...” for a moment, the three thought he’d actually consider it, just so they could get moving.

That hope was shattered in an instant when that man spoke up again, drawing the sound out and right into his response.

“Nope~! Now go on and get to it, you three! Shoo, shoo! Get a move on, now. We’re losing daylight here!”

Biting back groans and muttering to themselves (“We can’t even _see_ the daylight in here!” “Right?! Dattebayo!” “...”) that the man heard but chose to ignore, Naruto and Sasuke moved to get it all done. Kohaku, however, still staring at the remarkably lazy-looking Jounin, didn’t seem inclined to move at all. Instead, gaze boring into the Jounin that was steadily becoming more perturbed by the girl’s antics, golden amber eyes narrowing as the genin’s head tilted marginally, as if in contemplation of... _something_...that was probably not good for either genin or sensei.

(More than likely it was of their Sensei’s competence. Although, it could just as likely be consideration and/or calculations on what it would take to change to another Jounin-sensei. Either, or.)

Finally, after a long moment of silence, she moved —even if only due to the fact that Naruto had all but dragged her over to ‘help us figure out how to pack everything, ‘ttebayo!’ And with a blink, she obligingly turned her attention towards her teammate even as she reluctantly allowed herself to be pulled along. Sparing the man one last, almost dubious glance before silently following. The slow nod her only response to show her acquiescence to the request from the whiskered blonde to ‘hurry up already, dattebayo!’ as she picked up the pace a little.

Kakashi watched her go, resisting the urge to twitch as he did so.

He sweat a bit as he considered the ever mysterious thinking processes of the kunoichi. In the end, shaking his head, the man moved to make himself comfortable, pulling out another volume for him to read in order to pass time. 

This time, within the cover of another best seller was a journal he'd found lying around... _somewhere_...covering the topic of Elemental Chakra Induction. Nothing he wasn't already particularly aware of, of course. It was simply that the...theories...were such an interesting read that the man couldn't resist looking through it (if only for the potential ideas just the first few pages had given him). Besides, leaving such an important looking thing where any old ninja could just walk right by and swipe it...eh, what could he do but to swipe the poor, lonely looking book to indulge in some intellectual reading?

The ideas written in it were simply  _fascinating_ , you see... But he was digressing.

No doubt it would (probably) teach whoever it had originally belonged to to better protect their belongings, so see? Lesson, right there. Kakashi was really such a kind soul, wasn't he? I mean, sure, it might (probably, maybe, _very likely)_  set them back in their studies and/or experimentation for a while, but that was fine. He'd be sure to return it —maybe even with some new ideas for them to pursue, as well! 

Of course, being Kakashi, there was no way the troll would return it before whoever it was had either finally finished re-testing and recording their original findings, and/or became frustrated enough with their setback to implode....preferably the latter. The cyclops of a Jounin would of course also return his read to its exact place at the scene of the cri—er, right back to where he'd found it, just to be nice.

Probably the, uh, library...—or was it the AnBu break room...? (Eh, he could figure out the details later,  _someone_ would find it, anyways. It'd end up back with its owner soon enough...someday... _maybe_.)

Needless to say, said 'someone' was likely covering sneezes even as they cursed the 'mysterious thief' somewhere back in Konoha central, silver rimmed glasses reflecting light off their lenses as they muttered and tried to recreate what they'd remember of their missing experimental notes.

Kakashi, meanwhile, simply continued to read at leisure, making sure to keep at least part of his attention on the trio of genin —or really, two of said three genin— squabbling over who was going to carry what and why.

(“What?! Why do _I_ have to carry all the cooking shit! That's stupid! _You're_ stupid.” “Well, you’re the only one who _can’t_ cook—” “Can too! I can make ramen!” “— _anything other than instant ramen_ , so _you_ get to carry it. _Dobe_.” “Jerk!” “...” “ _Anyways._ We’ll split the other tools between Kohaku and myself. And the other stuff between all three of us. Any objections?” “...” “...Yeah, you’re still a _jerk_.” “ _Hn._ And _you’re_ still a Dead-Weight Dead-Last.” “Teme—!!” “...”)

As expected, things wouldn't go so smoothly, or so easily. This...was probably going to take a while.

—    ☙ ☾ ❧    —

By the time they _finally_ got everything sorted out to the man’s specifications (after packing, unpacking, and _re-_ packing three or four times at minimum... _each_ ), it was a little past noon. Thankfully, being ninja, their speed and pace far outstripped that of a civilian's, cutting off at least three quarters of the time it would have taken to get to their apparent destination otherwise.

Even with their Jounin-sensei leading at a moderate pace (he wasn’t in that much of a hurry, after all. Especially since an extended stay in the forest could only be of benefit his dear students~), they still managed to get there and set up —as well as make, and eat, a simple, if hearty lunch— before three.

After _that_ , however…

 _“Argh—!!”_ The yells of frustrated genin (or, well, a certain _blonde_ genin, anyways) filled the clearing that wrapped around the edge of the lake most of the waterways in the forest connected to. A loud splash echoing just as loudly afterwards, as said genin flailed and splashed about, causing ripples in the water as he tried to get up and  _out_ of it.

“ _Stop flailing,_ dumb-ass! You’re disrupting the surface tension of the water!”

Spluttering as he spit up some water, Naruto coughed and glared at his snappish teammate, “Yeah, well, I’d like to see _you_ do any better!” Like tree-climbing his _ass_ , running straight out didn’t help a goddamn thing!

Not that they'd been able to do so, Kakashi had only let them do a few stretches and some warm-ups before tossing him —and his teammates— right into the water. No warning at all, no matter _how_ he claimed otherwise.

("Telling us to stretch 'just in case' is _not_  a warning!" The two brunettes of the team nodded in agreement, a disgruntled Sasuke along with an utterly unamused Kohaku giving scathing glares as their only other responses. All three looking like drowns cats...or rats, as the case may be.)

“Well, if you’d _stop disturbing the water,_ then maybe I _could!"_  Sasuke snapped, closer to shore than the blonde, having at least _thought_ about the fact that getting too far out would only mean getting more wet, along with the potential necessity of swimming. (Not that he  _couldn't_.)

Of course, he wasn’t the closest inland, seeing as Kohaku had that pleasure. Eyes narrowed to near-slits, the pre-teen was glaring at the iridescent water that saoked herself and her teammates...and especially _her sandals_.

Unlike the others, the brunette had decided to take a _different_ approach, sticking as close to the edge as she could and going at a much slower pace until the genin was sure that she had the hang of it, before heading further out. (She would have been happier _not_ getting tossed into the water by a flippantly cheerful Hatake, but, well, one couldn’t exactly have everything... She'd find a way to get back at him for that anyways. Whether she had to enlist the others' help or not. She absolutely _hated_ getting wet. Especially if it not on her own terms or was without any warning at all.)

Or, well, as close as their Jounin-sensei would allow them, as far as the golden —nearly yellow— eyed genin could figure. And it was definitely with much more success than the others, as Sasuke found himself wobbling and sinking every time the altitude between water and earth changed. Especially as his concentration continued to cut out with the argument that seemed to be building between himself and their blonde teammate.

Hopefully, their arguing wouldn’t bring too much trouble to the team, considering how loud it was starting to get.

Maybe, if something happened, they’d finally _shut up_ …?

And just as she thought so, a shriek split the air, an inhuman shape gurgling, _quite_   _loudly,_ right after it. Along with more enraged yelling (mostly Sasuke being an angry wet blanket after falling into the lake —again— and getting drenched head to toe —again) from her teammates, if somewhat more frantic now, Kohaku finally looked up, eyes widening at the sight before her even as she tried to concentrate more on _not_ getting wet, her control...not quite faltering, per-say, but  _wobbling_ …a bit as she did so.

Silence rang through the clearing (aside from the minimal gurgling and disturbed splashing of water) for a moment, before all hell broke loose.

(“ _Ahhh—!! What the heck?! What is there a Giant Squid in the Middle of the Lake?!_ ” “ _The hell if I know, Dobe!! But— Oi,_ dodge _, dumbass—!!”_ )

“...” Maybe she shouldn’t have had that thought, wistful as it had been.

(She’d only wanted them to shut up, not get _louder_ — _!!_ This wasn't anywhere _close_ to what she'd wanted, at all. The heck?!)

Kohaku didn’t know if there was actually any correlation, but this was definitely _not_ what she’d been hoping for.  _Absolutely not._

For a moment, she contemplated leaving her teammates to it and trying to find a segment of water that wasn’t quite so affected by the ensuing ripples from the lake-top fight, before she quickly squashed that thought. As annoying as the boys could be (especially when they were being loud and/or arguing, at least), they _were_ still her teammates.

“The boys look like they’re having quite a bit of trouble,” their sensei spoke up, somehow allowing his voice to travel calmly from where he was onshore, and likely not even having looked up from his reading, if Kohaku guessed right.

Shrugging mentally, she tested her control on the water once more (she really, _really_ didn’t want to fall into the water now, especially after seeing _that_. No doubt there was more of the forest’s ‘mutated flora and fauna’ under there at the very least), before she shot a glance back at her still lax-looking teacher, followed by looking back towards the boys.

Decisions, decisions…

(It wasn’t really one, honestly, but she could still dither a bit. She _really_ didn’t want to fall into the water at that depth. Not because she couldn't swim —she could do that just fine, thank you— but more because she was concerned about what was _under_ the water. She was pretty sure she'd caught sight of some carnivorous seaweed-like flora, assuming she hadn't just been disoriented from being tossed into the lake all of a sudden during their earlier dip.)

“You probably should help them,” mused the rather canid man, finally lifting his eyes from his book to give her an amused _‘I know exactly what you’re thinking and you and I both know that won’t fly in my books’_ look.

Kohaku dismissed the hint for now, still testing her control for a moment as she lifted her foot, shifted, and made absolutely sure that she was still doing well enough in control that she got nothing worse than wet feet —and partially soaked sandals— before, finally, looking back up at the boys, giving an almost resigned if silent sigh.

(More for the fact that she was likely to get more wet from all the splashing they were doing than anything else, honestly.)

Reaching into her pouch, she pulled out a fresh spool of wire (no need to waste time unwinding the one in her obi when there was no rush. Re-spooling that one would be too much of a pain when she had the time to grab her other one), and a small packet of seasoning (more for the salt, than the actual use of seasoning, since Naruto had insisted on having ramen, and...well, Kohaku preferred mixing something healthy in at least, instead of the...whatever it was in the contents of the included ‘sauce’ packet things in there). Who knew, maybe it’d be helpful, she thought, a delicate shudder running through her as she grimaced, recalling something she really, really did not want to remember.

(She may or may not still have been having flashbacks from the mutated slug-beast feasting on a rotting carcass nearly twice its size from an encounter earlier on. Of course, it had chosen to attack _them_ when it sensed the 'fresh meat' in its vicinity. Slime, rapid decomposition inducing acid, and _other_ viscera had been involved at the very least... It had given her more than enough nightmare fodder as it was. And she was pretty sure she'd more than filled her quota of disgust induced nausea, as well.)

Ugh, _so gross._ Trying to resist the urge to gag, she found herself coughing up water as an angry roar —accompanied by equally violent thrashing— split the air (as well as the water), sending waves across the pond. Some of it flying and crashing over her (and more than just liberally soaking her, there was enough water that it was _still_ cascading down and over her head), as she did her best not to think of just  _what_ said water she'd been choking on was actually composed of.

Tears mixing with still dripping water, she coughed once more before twitching, lips pressing thin as she automatically threw herself into the fight with the most furious snarl-like sound she'd ever been likely to make.

(Oh Gods, she could still  _taste_  it.)

After _all_ her efforts, _all her attempts to stay as dry as possible…!_

(So _disgusting._ She really hoped she'd brought some water purifiers with her. Or at least the anti-bacterial and cleansing pills.)

Granted, her coat was —mostly— waterproof, but that didn’t mean she liked getting drenched without warning! Sensei was one thing, but this?  _This was an entirely different kettle of fish_...or soon to be Calamari, anyways.

As the only one left behind on shore, Kakashi chuckled, far too amused by his students’ antics to really pay much more attention to his book for the moment. This would probably come back to bite them all —or at least him— in the ass, but hey, seemed they might be having seasoned and/or grilled squid for dinner, at least. Which was always nice.

Free food, that was.

—Or maybe it was more along the lines of dinner and a show?

Ah, well, in any case, the kids seemed to be doing fine from what he could see. Despite their attempts to char-grill the thing first (Sasuke, obviously, since Naruto still couldn’t get a proper fireball going yet...well, he _could_ ...but it was a tiny puff-ball just barely enough to start smoke let alone a fire, and definitely not something usable in battle...just  _yet_ , at least... And that wasn't even mentioning all the attempts in which the thing would just end up blowing up in his own face instead. From chakra overload, of course. Thank the Kami for his quick healing rate, at least), it was Kohaku using her ninja-wire to start slicing tentacles that finally reminded the boys of their _other_ weapons —aside from the standard kunai and shuriken, that was. Those just either bounced off the monster of a beast (that clearly belonged in the sea, rather than a lake) or did little more harm than pinpricks with its thick skin— that they still had in their arsenals.

Thankfully, Sasuke was at least somewhat adept in wire-use, while Naruto (not being a wire-expert unless he was using a line or rope for pranking purposes) did more playing the duty of heavy hitter and distraction (or tank, as some might say). Especially with his ability call up multiple shadow clones at once.

Good, good…

Looks like they were starting to learn to properly work together without thought, and just barely three days in! Grinning behind his mask, Kakashi chuckled and returned to his book, confident that the trio would be able to handle themselves.

Besides, he’d still be keeping his senses open, and if anything _did_ require his intervention...well, he _was_ still there, after all~~

(He’d be sorely disappointed if they couldn’t at least handle a little live calamari, though.)

— ☙ ✧ ❧ —

It wasn't long after that the trio finally dragged their ink, blood (thankfully not theirs, for the most part, anyways), and water soaked selves back to shore, the dead body of a squid close to the size of a building floating on the water. Only partially dragged to shore so that it wouldn't float too far or sink. There was no way they were letting their prize go after how hard they'd fought, after all.

(Seriously, though, why the hell was there a squid  _in a lake,_ anyways?!)

None of the kids looked amused.

“Damnit, Sensei! Why didn’t you tell us there were weird things in the water, too?!” Two of the three were scowling (the final mostly sulking) as they shot glares at the man between trying to wring as much water out of their clothes (and some of their hair) as possible. They'd have to clean up and treat whatever injuries (minor bruises or small cuts from accidentally touching something sharp for the most part) that they had before washing their clothes of whatever blood and ink there was before it permanently stained, as well.

“Hmm? But I did~?” he smiled, hiding his amusement (and not very well at that) behind the curved lines of his eye and mask.

“No, you didn’t! You didn’t say _anything_ _about giant squids at all_ , ‘ttebayo!” the rambunctious blonde exclaimed, definitely still the most energetic of the trio, though even he looked to be getting tired from their seemingly endless ‘workouts’.

Ah, well, that just meant he’d have to work a little harder at tiring them out, he supposed.

As it was, he took the time to look at the three genin.  _Really_ look at them, as he took note of the fact that, for the moment, Naruto continued to claim first for most vitality. And while all three had been drenched, Kohaku and Sasuke looked more like drowns cats than anything. Despite —or perhaps even more because of— their offended expressions as they wrung out what they could before giving it up as a bad job. At least they were at least dripping far less than their jumpsuit wearing compatriot, though.

Noting that none of them had really sustained any injuries —with Naruto having the least thanks to his high vitality and healing rate— he hummed, musing on how tired they all looked in spite of themselves. (Some exhaustion, shivering despite the temperate weather... Sasuke seemed to be acting cautiously with his arm —A bruise or a strain, perhaps? He'd check on that later. Kohaku seemed to have gotten over her nausea from earlier...though he had a guess of what she'd been thinking of then, and he'd likely have agreed if he weren't far more desensitized to such things than the kids.)

Perfectly fine at the end of it all, he thought, satisfied, as he came to a decision.

The trio had worked hard, and a bit of a break now would be better for morale. Especially with how withdrawn they were becoming as of late, complaints aside.

"Well, I suppose, since you _did_ take care of the hunting already, we can cut that much out of our schedule. So why don't you all go get clean and dry before we continue? I'll even take care of the cooking for tonight," he promised. They certainly deserved that much at the very least. His methods were crazy, true, but that didn't mean he didn't  _care_ about his little underlings. (Whether it was now, or even back when he was still Captain of his squad in AnBu.)

"It certainly wouldn't do for my cute little genin to catch colds because of all this, now, would it?" Nodding to himself, he poked at the fire he'd starter earlier with the wet branch he'd picked up while they'd fought. "It'd only further delay our return from this little field trip, after all." 

(And there went any warm feelings and good will that may have been about to bud at their crazy Jounin Sensei's care. Snuffed out like a match doused in water.)

Still, unlikely as it was —for Naruto, at the very least— the other two did worry him a bit as they continued to shake. Kohaku's being the most obvious even in spite of all the extra layers, though Sasuke was certainly doing a good impression of a newly released quiver despite his attempts otherwise. Even as he spoke, though, the genius' mind quickly ran through various simulations and solutions as contingency for any issues that might crop up.

They would have to remain under a certain amount of stress at least, to get the best out of this trip, but that didn't mean their health was to be neglected either. He had been keeping a close eye on their conditions the entire time, after all.

Shooing them all off to go change, and succeeding not to draw any suspicion —or at least, any more than he usually did, anyways. Really, though, their lack of faith in him was almost alarming— he quickly proceeded to make preparations for their meal.

There was plenty of squid to go around, and it wasn't like they'd be able to carry all of back with them, or as they went, even with what availability of sealing scrolls they had, so best to just make the most of it while they could. It'd be good bait for some of the more carnivorous fish in the lake once it approached evening, as well. They might not be pretty, but as far as he could recall, they were certainly still delicious if prepared right. 

Cheerfully humming to himself as he sliced several portions of squid larger than his own head (hair included), he pulled out the set of spices he always carried with him, just in case. He could probably make some fried Calamari with the waterproof scroll sealed flour, along with some of the other ingredients he kept with him. (Seals were seriously so useful... He'd have to remember to teach his team some basics later, he mused. Maybe after dinner even, since they were probably too tired to do anything else, and he'd be damned if he didn't take advantage of any time they had to train while they were in here. He'd just move the original lesson plan to the next evening, since he doubted they'd be leaving the area for another day or so, anyway.)

More importantly, it was time to impress his genin with their Sensei's campfire cooking skills! He could share a few tips and tricks for doing so when they came back, since they'd most likely only learned the bare basics in the academy. (Seriously, only one training trip per year? And barely even two days worth of practical training at that! He was probably going to have to talk to Hokage-sama about that when they got back...—well, assuming he remembered, anyway.)

Still, having since waved his kids off (and ignoring their dubious belief in his ability to cook, _ouch_ ), he went back to his mental notes of the group's progress so far. They'd only managed to through a fraction of what he wanted to do, but he'd probably have to readjust some of his plans to take into account that they were children rather than adults. The last few days had reminded him of the fact that none of the kids were actually prodigies as he had been, so he'd have to readjust how long it'd take. Still probably better than the average genin at least...though, that may have partly been due to duress, considering no other genin team had been allowed to do as they had. And also, because, of course, they were  _his_ team. And hell if  _his_  —first and only— genin team would be anything but  _Awesome_ ( _yes, with the Capital_ and _Italics_ ). Just like him.

Minato-sensei's training regimen had been adjusted especially for him, and Obito and Rin had already known most of the basics back then, anyways. Unfortunately, Kakashi hadn't really paid much attention to the 'remedial' lessons the other two had to go through to catch up with him in practical knowledge, aside from some taunts and working on his own thing (Seals were probably the one thing he'd really had to try hard on, to be honest. Minato-sensei and Kushina-nee had always had different ways of explaining it, so it was no wonder he'd gotten confused at times. Not to mention it'd pissed him off back then that Obito _and_  Rin had seemed to get some of it faster than him, even if it was only the basic seals compared to his higher level in comprehension. Rin hadn't even cared all that much about seals, aside from the basics! And _Obito_ , freaking  _Obito_ who, despite being a complete disaster, had somehow managed to come out with better calligraphy and had seemed to figure them out quicker than he had when he'd first started. Granted, 'creativity' and 'age' apparently had something to do with it, and the fact that all Uchiha children were apparently required to learn the art of Calligraphy writing)...

Oh, he was getting distracted. Either way, even adjusting based on what he'd seen, it probably wouldn't take more than two weeks, tops, to get the basics he wanted them to learn down. His 'one week' had been based on the amount of time it'd taken him to learn it all from Minato-sensei and doubled with an extra day or two of practice to ensure they'd got it all down.

(They hadn't been kidding when they'd hailed Hatake Kakashi as a genius, it'd only taken him two or three days to get it all, and only another day's worth of self-practice to get most of it down pat. Though, granted, it hadn't included sleep deprivation and chakra expansion outside of the usual 'use and rest to refill' once he'd hit his safe limit.)

Either way, based on what he'd seen, Sasuke would be able to grasp things quickly once he properly understood what it was he had to do and had practiced enough to get it down pat, if what he'd seen of his use of his skill set up until now was any indication. Most of it was textbook or Uchiha learned stuff that had clearly been practiced until he'd worn himself out. Though he did have a good reaction and thought time, at least.

Naruto, while still having trouble with his chakra control, had a more instinctive understanding of certain things. Not unlike Minato-sensei to be honest (thank the gods for compartmentalization and the ability to multitask, he mused, carefully separating emotion from clinical thought). If he was anything like either of his parents, he'd probably take to Sealing like a duck to water once he'd fixed some of his atrocious handwriting. (Something that was very clear he would have to fix, though that could wait...for now. Sealing training would help with that as well, anyway.) The blonde needed to learn patience, though he could take advantage of the prankster's ability to spam shadow clones there, at least.

(He'd have to remember to warn the other two not to use it just yet, though. They might be able to pull off  _one_ at the moment, but it would leave them both severely drained just to do that much. Thankfully, chakra expansion was part of his plans for the week...or two, depending on how well everything went. They'd have to head back at the end of those fourteen days regardless, though. He'd only been able to ask for so long on training leave.)

Naruto's unorthodox fighting and thought process would probably be an asset once the trio had finally learned to work and read each other to avoid getting caught in each other's jutsu and attacks, though. At least a quarter of their cuts and bruises so far had come from accidentally getting in each other's way, though it'd been steadily improving, at least.

Finally, Kohaku clearly had practice with with her skills, and trained diligently, so there wasn't much to be said there. He still ended up scratching his head at her sometimes odd thought process, but, whatever worked. She was getting far easier to read thanks to everyone's close proximity, but she still did things that baffled  _Naruto_ sometimes, and the blonde had long since been crowned the king of surprises.

Well, it was a two way street, considering she was clearly just as baffled at some of the things they considered normal. He'd really have to talk to her guardian (Totsuka, if he recalled correctly...and he pretty sure he did, considering he had memorized and could recognize at least those that had been in service while he had) to get a better handle on the girl's thought process. He hadn't worked closely or often enough with the other brunette to be able get either of them, aside from the fact that they were both clearly rather disinclined to more of the verbal or unspoken social cues. Well, that and the fact that they were surprisingly serious considering how odd they could be at times, yet rational in their own way.

(Using Ninja skills and jutsu for housekeeping wasn't exactly something one would normally think of, even if it did make sense in hindsight.)

From what he could tell, though, Kohaku was actually far more social than her Father/Uncle. Ironically more verbal too, though he had a suspicion that was just because she hadn't learned all the silent ninja cues and hand-signs just yet, or she assumed her teammates hadn't either. Something that would be good to teach them —but not until later.

He wanted her to get used to actually verbalizing her thoughts rather than seemingly assuming the others understood what she meant when she suddenly said something that seemed completely out of the blue to others. It wasn't as if her thoughts were easily read off her face like they were for some ninja —and most civilians— either way.

Well, whatever. That wasn't all he'd taken note of, of course, but it was a good starting point. He'd had plans, but those tended not to survive first contact anyway, so he supposed he could just use it as a general guideline and play it by ear otherwise. 

He'd probably have to teach them not to simply leave their bags unguarded too, though. Even if he was around to watch them, he mused, eyeing Sasuke's pack and what looked to be the ransacked remains of Naruto's things. Kohaku had taken hers along with her, but she'd probably had reason for doing so without considering the security risk, regardless. 

Still, he'd give them a pass this time. They'd worked hard, and he  _was_ still present to guard it all, so he'd let it slide for now. 

Chuckling to himself, as he mused at the unspoken trust they still gave despite everything he'd thrown their way (his way of reminding them to look underneath the underneath). That didn't stop him continuing to plan and make contingencies for said plans, of course. Maybe they wouldn't survive contact with the enemy, but that didn't mean he couldn't prepare other plans, just in case. That was just what being a ninja was all about, after all. 

He wondered how the trio would react when they realized that everything he'd done, whether messing with them or not, were still lessons in and of themselves? (Though whether the 'warm fuzzies' he was currently feeling was due to proximity with fire, his fond amusement over his kids, or...something else, was another question altogether.)

 —    ☙ ✧ ❧    —

Once everyone had returned, Kakashi informed them that the food would be ready soon, as they hung their wet clothes where they could to dry. The scent of grilling seafood causing more than one of the genin's mouths to water. (They definitely hadn't expected the Jounin to be a good cook, even if it was only campfire cooking.)

As the trio sat and warmed themselves by the fire, they waited for the food to finish cooking, watching with unveiled curiosity as the cyclops ensured the food wouldn't burn while heating it as evenly as one could over an outdoor fire.

Eventually, though, he finished, warning the kids not to burn themselves before passing it all out. He'd leave some squid in a marinate for tomorrow, and sliced some in long, thin strands in place of noodles for later as well. (As close as he'd come to indulging Naruto with his Ramen obsession. Even he knew that only ramen was not a healthy diet, no matter how balanced one tried to make it.)

As they settled in to eat, though, Kakashi remembered something that he'd have to remind them of mid-bite of seafood, even as certain members of the group either praised —Naruto— or deemed the food acceptable —Sasuke— for its fare.

(Kohaku simply enjoyed what she could, nodding in agreement to Naruto's exclamation of surprised content. Sasuke's 'hn,' as close to agreement as the raven haired genin ever got. Though she could definitely do without Naruto trying to scarf his food down, only to be reminded to slow down when he finally burnt his tongue due to impatience after the first bite.

(And to think, Kakashi-sensei had already warned them about it being hot, too.)

Said Jounin just hummed in acceptance before speaking up again.

"Oh... By the way," he started, a smile in his tone as his single visible eye curved in amusement. "the plan was to move on from here tomorrow morning, but since you all haven't actually managed to finish the Water-Walking Exercise, we'll probably end up having to stay here another day or so at least," he mused. "Which means an extra day outside of the original week we planned to say!" He exclaimed. Extra cheerily. Mostly just because he could.

Wide eyes turned to him in disbelief, especially as they realized he hadn't been joking the other day when he'd said they'd be staying however many days extra it took them to through what was originally only supposed to be a week or so's itinerary.

"WHAT—?!" Naruto started, choking on his mouthful of Calamari as the other two started thumping his back. One panicked and the other clearly alarmed by the unexpected event.

("This is why you don't talk with your mouth full, Dobe!" "Sh-shu- _hughk_ —" choked coughing ensued, "— _Shut up_ , Bastard! That obviously had nothing to do with it!" Teary eyes and a slight wheeze, a grimace forming on the last member's face as she caught the sound of a piece still rattling in the blonde's windpipe. " _You_ shut up and _fucking breathe_ , Moron!" was the only response he got from the —secretly— relieved shinobi.)

Either way, they looked absolutely horrified.

"Now, now, Naruto-kun. Calm down before you choke yourself, okay?" Kakashi chided genially, ignoring the fact that he'd said so far too late to be of any help, but calmly cheerful nonetheless.

("It's obviously all your fault anyways, stupid Scarecrow-sensei," Naruto grumbled, only to be ignored by said 'Scarecrow-sensei'. The others simply gave long-suffering sighs, whether mentally or physically. Honestly, they almost seemed to be at the point of giving up. Questioning their entire existence, let alone their current situation, by either looking to the heavens or closing their eyes in what Kakashi might even have suspected to be despair if he weren't so busy being amused by this situation.)

(Yup, best decision ever. He didn't think he'd ever end up regretting taking his genin team on, if at all.)

He almost couldn't wait to see how they'd react to the rest of their plans for the week —plus however much longer it took to get through it all— he mused, nearly giddy with glee despite the seemingly calm smile on his face.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, I'd like to thank everyone that's still following this. I know I'm not exactly the best with updates. My muses are quite finicky, and Real Life issues really don't help, either. This chapter may be just a tiny bit shorter than usual, but I wanted to at least get it out for everyone that's been so patiently waiting and/or looking forward to an update.
> 
> Secondly, as I seem to have a tendency to post first on AO3 nowadays, so I can at least assure you that you're getting stuff as soon as I've finished writing and gone through it at least _once_ for a final pre-post checkover. (It doesn't always help, but since I'm continuing to catch my own mistakes, well... I'd like to think it's not useless, at least)
> 
> Honestly, though, I’ve been having a lot of trouble cranking this chapter out specifically. I don’t know what it is about it and this arc that keeps causing me to hit walls, but it has. I swear I’ve written, scrapped, and re-written each portion at least five/six time just per _scene_ (no lie), that’s how bad it was. It probably doesn’t help that Real Life was taking a toll among other things that’ve kept me busy, but, well, here you go. You finally get a chapter.
> 
> Just for the record, the next one will probably be an Omake and/or Extra. I'm not sure which one it'll be just yet. (I make no promises, though.) It may just end up being an official interlude that still canonically takes place here in the TEAM!Verse, but we'll see if I end up posting it separately or not when it's done.
> 
> General plans for the entirety of the arc _have_ been completed for those curious, it's mostly just getting my muses to cooperate that's the issue. There's so much I want to do with this Arc, but some of it may end up getting pushed into an Extra set if I can't fit it all in before we get to the Wave Arc. We'll see, though.
> 
> As previously mentioned, though, I will be changing some of the font/break styles to make things flow a little easier (at least, to me), though the prior chapters will have to wait a bit for me to change that. For now, though, everything's basically the same, though if anyone wants to go back and reread, there may or may not be a little bit of new content, mostly by way of additional perspective or rewording a few things to flow better or seem less out of character. (Honestly, I cringed at some of the inconsistencies, though I don't know if anyone picked them up.)


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